Daybreak
by Pheep
Summary: Just a little something for what happens after Lady Knight... mainly, what happens between Kel and a certain sergeant friend of hers. ON PERMANENT HAITUS.
1. Formal Wear

^^; Hey there, all you happy readers. Pheep here. This is chapter 1 of my first ever Tortall fanfic, in fact, my first Tamora Pierce fanfic, so bare with me, okay?...Good. @@ Enjoy.

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Daybreak

Chapter 1 -- _Formal Wear_

+ + +

Lady Yukimi of Queenscove paced across the wooden floors of Lalasa's shop. Every few moments she turned her head and glanced at one of the dressing room stalls, her anxiousness showing clearly on her tan Yamani face. The palace bells rang in her ears as they chimed four 'o clock in the afternoon, and she sighed in annoyance before turning once again to glare at the stall door "KEL! Get out here, we're going to be late!" She called, her tone impatient. A very unladylike snarl emerged from the stall in reply, and Yukimi frowned deeply, before sighing once again. SHE had been able to pick out her outfit in less than 20 minutes. She stood wearing it now, a lovely dark crimson gown with golden trim and sash, large outlines of roses sewn into the skirt in gold thread. The slim design of the gown looked good on her, fitting the rich curves of her hips like a glove; _'Neal will love it'_ Yuki thought to herself, and giggled, the thought of her husband making her slightly giddy.

Anyway. The fact remains that Yuki had been able to pick out a dress and put it on, in precisely 17 minutes. Kel, unfortunately, was a different story. _'And to think when we came here it was just barely 2 'o clock...' _Yuki thought, and slumped into a nearby chair. The last time she had seen the young lady knight was when she had marched grimly into the dressing room, a heap of various gowns in her arms and a chilling scowl set into her face. That had been over an hour ago. Yuki closed her eyes, and started to wonder if she should just leave for the wedding by herself and let Kel miss it. "Perhaps Lord Raoul would believe me if I were to tell him that she had taken ill and died in bed..." Yuki muttered bitterly, getting to her feet. Enough of this. She strode briskly over to the stall that Kel occupied, rapping on the door several times. "KEL?"

"What!?" An annoyed female voice called in response, its volume muffled by the door between it and Yuki's ears. 

"You've been in there forever. Pick a gown and come out of there **NOW**, before I have to break the door down."

Silence. Kel was obviously considering it; it was rare for Yuki to be so visibly angry, since her Yamani upbringing had been so strict about showing one's emotions. Seeing, or, in this case, hearing her act in such a way, was a very, very bad sign. Soon a loud sigh was heard from within the stall. "Alright. Give me just five more minutes."

"Fine, but that's it." Yuki warned, and returned to her pacing. A short while later, a nearby door creaked open, and Yuki's head snapped in its direction. She stepped back and stood in front of the half-open door, waiting. 

Keladry of Mindelan stepped quietly out of her stall, and turned to face her friend, looking down in embarrassment. She wore a vibrant green gown, the color of emeralds. The front of the gown began a couple of inches past Kel's neck, revealing just the right amount of her chest. Large opals were sown around the waistline, and they gleamed a soft milky gold, the light catching flecks of other colors as well. Smaller opals, barely larger than an average pebble, were lined around the hem of the gown, and ascending from about 5 of them (spaced evenly around the skirt) were trails of silvery-white pearls, their sizes growing smaller and smaller as they went farther up the skirt, until some were no larger than a rhinestone. Jade-colored lace wrapped loosely around the edges of Kel's shoulders for straps, and just below the opals at the waistline hung a sash of the same color and material. As for jewelry, there was nothing, save a modest-looking opal pendant, which hung on a gold chain. Kel turned slowly in a circle to show the whole gown, and Yuki gasped when she saw the elegant dip at the back of the gown, which reached almost halfway down Kel's back. 

Yuki stood, dark eyes wide, looking completely baffled. This was not the frill-phobic knight from an hour ago. This was a -_lady-_; and how such a bizarre transformation had taken place was simply beyond the Yamani.

Well, maybe that wasn't completely true. Kel finished her circle, and looked up at her friend, her cheeks scarlet. "I know it looks awful on me, but..." Her eyes shifted about. She was obviously very uncomfortable at the idea of being seen this way in public. It would have actually been rather funny to Yuki to see her usually courageous friend act like this, but at the time she was too busy trying to snap out of her shock.

It took a few seconds for Yuki to register what Kel had said. She blinked, and shook her head vigorously "No, Kel, no!! It -- it looks _fantastic_." She said, sounding almost as surprised as Kel looked upon hearing this.

"You really think so?" Kel asked, looking at her Yamani friend sternly. "REALLY think so?" She didn't want any false compliments; that would just make it even more horrible when she came to Raoul's wedding looking so silly. _'And in front of all those people...'_ Kel thought, her anxiety building.

"YES. Kel -- it -- YES. You HAVE to buy it." Yuki said, throwing her arms out -- the comical-looking gesture strongly reminded Kel of Neal in that moment, and she smiled inwardly; Yuki was starting to pick up some of her husband's habits.

Her thoughts returned to the issue at hand, and she closed her eyes for a second, appearing to be deep in consideration, but what she was really doing was picturing her lake; the calm, peaceful lake with a surface like glass. She knew she was going to buy the gown. She also knew that if she didn't calm down soon, she would drive herself completely insane. Finally, when she felt her nerves were settled enough, she opened her eyes and nodded. "Alright. But you had better not be lying about how it looks on me..." She muttered darkly, though it wasn't as dark a tone as was intended.

Yuki grinned, and Kel hoped that it was sincerity she was seeing in her friend's eyes. "Well, let's go tell Lalasa," Yuki said, pulling Kel along by one hand. "By the way, if that purse the king gave you for beating Blayce isn't gone once you've finished paying, could you lend me a few coins? I'm a little short on change."

+ + +

Author's Note: So did you like it? I hope you liked it. Please **review** if you did. This IS my first Tortall fic, so I'm kind of nervous...You know, **reviewing** would really help my self-confidence, here, or at least tell me what I need to change...@_@ If it's that bad. I know it's short, but that's because it's the first chapter, I guess ^^; If Kel seemed out of character to you, it's because...Well, she's being forced to wear a gown, here XD I think that's good enough. Also, I'm sorry if I described the gown too much...^^; I just really wanted you guys to be able to visualize it, ya know? And at least it was only one paragraph. Heh.

P.S.: **R E V I E W .**

~Pheep


	2. Damn Weird

Hello all you happy readers! ^_^ Thanks for sticking around to read this next chapter. Also, thank you to everyone who reviewed for chapter one, it made me very happy to read your comments! Enjoy!

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Daybreak

Chapter 2 -- Damn Weird

+ + +

Kel stared blankly into the mirror on her dresser. It was after six; soon she and Yuki would leave their rooms and go to the Hall of Crowns, where the wedding ceremony would be held. Kel had grinned when she had received her invite to the event; she glanced at it now where it sat on her dresser, out of the corner of her eye. 

__

Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan,

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Sir Raoul of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak and Buriram Tourakom of the K'miri Hau Ma. The ceremony will take place on the 15th of November, in the Great Hall. Guests should arrive at six-thirty in the evening, and are asked to come in formal dress. The ceremony will be followed by a wedding reception outdoors, in the Palace Gardens. We hope you will be able to attend.

The wedding was no surprise; after all, Raoul and Buri's romance was known throughout the palace, as well as their betrothal. Kel was sure that they would be very happy together. The two seemed to be a great match for each other.

The invitation, although written by a scribe, was signed by Raoul and Buri, and to Kel's great disdain Raoul had also scribbled a short note at the bottom of the paper which read, "_This means a gown for you, Mindelan!"_. Kel had expressed many pleas and protests to her former knightmaster on this issue, but Raoul had been adamant, or in Kel's words, "a perfect sadist". She had heard his muffled snickering when they had crossed paths earlier that day. 

"He just wants to see me suffer." She told her reflection flatly, and returned to brooding over her appearance. After buying the dress, Yuki had brought a stylist to Kel's sleeping chambers, whom had worked on the two girls' faces and hair. Kel's face was lightly brushed with face-paint; she wouldn't allow more then a small amount. Her hair, which she had never had time to get trimmed during her watch over Haven (and search for Blayce), had grown all the way down to where it just barely brushed her shoulders, and Kel had decided that she liked it that way. The sandy light brown locks were braided in several places now, and were adorned with a scattering of emeralds. Kel pressed some of her hair to her nose and sniffed. A vague, fragrant scent filled her nostrils. 

'_I just can't win...'_ She thought, sighing to herself. She got to her feet and made for the door, then suddenly jerked to the side, nearly falling over. She swore, and glared down at the cursed dark green heels Yuki had practically forced her to wear. Kel groaned inwardly and glanced forlornly behind her, to the leather boots sitting at the foot of the bed; she wished Yuki hadn't noticed she'd been shopping in them the entire afternoon, and not in the 'proper' footwear.

Someone knocked at the door. Kel sighed and wobbled over to it, swinging it open to see Yuki, her hand raised to knock again. Her raven hair was braided and pulled back into an intricate bun, with two ringlets left out to frame her face. She wore no facepaint on her cheeks, though a deep reddish purple tinged her eyelids, and her lips shone a rich crimson in the dimmed lighting. She smiled at Kel, and clasped her hands behind her back, a mischievous glint in her dark brown eyes. "Shall we go, milady?"

Kel threw her a dark glare. "Don't call me that..."

Yuki stifled a giggle and tugged at Kel's arm. Put off balance, Kel slipped and fell to the floor, swearing vividly. Yuki laughed outright at this, shaking her head as she bent down to help her friend up.

+ + +

Sergeant Domitan of Masbolle leaned back against his pew, staring up at the far-off ceiling of the Great Hall. To his left sat his cousin, Nealan of Queenscove (or "Meathead", as Dom liked to call him), who sat at the very edge of their pew, facing the isle and looking about cynically. Alanna the Lioness was sitting to his right, and next to her was her husband, George. Dom closed his eyes, his head pounding dully with a fading hangover. He had been up late last night with the rest of his squad, throwing a bachelor party for Raoul. Opening his eyes briefly, Dom turned his head slightly to glare at his commander, who was standing ramrod straight at the altar, stiffer than a block of wood. Raoul had been the only one who hadn't consumed any alcohol the night before, and Dom felt a bitter sort of envy toward him for that; the pounding in his head grew pointedly stronger, and he closed his eyes again. Vague flashes of memories from the night before passed through his mind, many of which involved his men babbling nonsensically and breaking numerous things in Raoul's chambers. Dom winced inwardly: he had trashed a few things himself, he knew. He also knew that Lord Raoul would remember this quite clearly.

The doorman announced someone, but Dom's mind was too clouded to bother interpreting who. A moment later Neal gasped, and elbowed him _hard_ in the arm. Dom twitched, blue eyes snapping open to glare at him. Stupid Meathead. Interrupting his nap. 

Neal's attention, however, was focused on the people walking down the isle; annoyed, yet curious, Dom followed his cousin's gaze. His jaw dropped slightly. There was Yukimi, looking quite lovely in dark red and gold and waving to Neal, a grin on her face. Behind her...No. There was just no way...

Behind Yukimi was a very familiar-looking individual. Same hair, same eyes, same face...This person looked exactly like Keladry of Mindelan.

But, that was just not right. Kel, he knew, would never...-_never_- wear a gown. Especially such a nice-looking one. It simply went against the laws of nature. And what's that glinting in her hair?...

What was happening here? Dom rubbed his eyes, and stared hard. It -was- her. Astonishing, he thought, and watched as she walked slowly, seeming slightly unbalanced, towards the pew across from him. She sat down in the middle beside Yuki, cheeks flushed, and gazed down into her lap.

"Unbelievable..." Neal said quietly, and turned slightly to glance at Dom. "That _is_ her, right?"

Dom nodded slowly, his eyes still on Kel. "I...I think so..."

Neal shook his head a few times, as though to clear his thoughts. "That's just weird."

Dom nodded once in agreement, and, after a moment, tore his eyes away from the bizarre sight. It was damn weird. 

__

'...Although,' Dom thought, staring wide-eyed down at the floor, _'She certainly doesn't look **bad**...'_

Someone started to play the organ, and Dom jumped slightly, surprised by the noise. He looked up to watch the ceremony.

+ + +

Dom got up and stretched his arms out; Raoul and Buri had just left the hall together, in the midst of raining rice grains that people had thrown down from the balcony. The wedding was over, and the people around him were getting up as well, walking out through the large double-doors to follow the newlyweds to the gardens for the reception. Suddenly remembering something, his head turned quickly to look at the pew across from him. Kel and Yukimi were gone. He saw a brief flash of green in the corner of his eye, and he looked to the open doorway, but whoever it was had already gone. Dom's brow furrowed, and soon he realized that he was the last one left in his row. Quickly, he walked out through the narrow strip of floor between the pews and half-ran from the isle, catching up to Neal and the others. 

Once they arrived at the palace gardens, Dom scanned the area with his eyes, continuing his search for the elusive Kel. He didn't know **why** exactly he wanted to talk to her so much, but...It was just too strange. A part of him was almost convinced that he had dozed off for a bit and dreamt up the whole thing, and that the organ had woken him up...

Wait. Over there. Someone in green.

Dom blinked, and took a few steps forward to get a closer look. There was one of the garden benches, and on it sat Kel, her hands folded in her lap, glancing from side to side like a caged animal. A few feet away from her stood Neal and Yuki, flirting shamelessly and chatting about the wedding. Dom took in the situation silently, suddenly feeling rather sorry for the lady knight. She obviously didn't want to be there. He started to walk towards her, and then he stopped, blinking a few times. He felt...odd. Dazed, sort of, but at the same time he felt strangely alert. '_It must be the lack of sleep._' He decided, and started towards Kel once more, quickening his pace. He called out to her, and she looked up. Seeing him, a grateful smile spread across her face.

"Dom! So you came, too." Kel said as he closed the distance between them, and sat down next to her on the bench. He nodded at her comment. "Even if My Lord hadn't already sent me an invite, I guess he would have felt obliged after the party we gave him last night...Sort of."

Kel's eyebrows raised slightly. "How did it go?"

Dom smiled ruefully, "You don't want to know. Trust me." 

Kel snickered. "I see..." She said, struggling to keep the mirth out of her voice. Dom chuckled briefly himself; the laughter was contagious. He ended up telling her about some parts of the party anyway, ones that he remembered well enough, and weren't too embarrassing. He relaxed: Kel seemed normal enough, despite her surreal choice of dress.

After a while the subject of the bachelor party was exhausted, and a long silence stretched out between the two of them. Kel took in her surroundings, observing the people and the decorations. Dom, meanwhile, took this time to look over his friend's appearance from a closer viewpoint. It was amazing, really, seeing her like this. He had never seen Kel in anything other than tunic and breeches, and in her battle gear, of course. The gown was surprisingly well suited to her; its color brought out the green in her hazel eyes, and the opal theme was a nice touch. She turned her head slightly, and light bounced off of the emeralds placed in her hair. Dom's eyes lifted up to her head at the flash. So that's what the glinting had been...

"Er...Dom..."

Dom blinked. Kel was staring uneasily at him now, her cheeks tinted a slightly darker shade of pink than the facepaint had given them. She looked embarrassed. 

Suddenly he realized that he had been staring, and felt his own face redden slightly. _'Idiot'_ he scorned, _'What the hell are you doing?!_'

"Sorry, it's just..." Dom began slowly, trying to think of the right words. He failed miserably. "Wow, you know?" Suddenly, he had the overwhelming urge to bash his head in several times. Possibly on the tree behind them... "I mean, um--"

"Lord Raoul made me..." Kel mumbled, looking down; a light frown had settled onto her face.

"Oh." was the articulate response. "Well, it looks...erm..." Dom fumbled, and stopped for a moment to think, his verbal skills failing him once again. Since when was he this bad at everyday conversation?

Unfortunately, Kel misinterpreted the pause. She tensed, and turned her head away from him, "I know I look silly, alright?" she said tersely. Her head tilted down slightly, and her hair fell across the side of her face, hiding her expression from Dom as it did. 

'_What?' _Dom blinked at her, and his eyes widened slightly. _'This is bad,' _he thought, _'very bad...'_ "No! That's not..."

Kel glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. Good. She was listening. 

"You...You look _fine_." He told her, a surprised kind of assurance in his tone. '_Better than fine,' _he thought, but for some reason decided not to add aloud. 

Kel blinked and turned her head to face him, fixing him with a suspicious gaze. Was he being serious?

Dom quickly read the skepticism in her expression. "Really! I'm not lying." He held one hand up and put the other to his chest. "Scout's honor."

Kel arched a brow at him, the corners of her mouth quirking as she tried not to smile. "And you're a scout?"

Dom frowned at her, feigning a pout. "Why must you always complicate things like that?...Fine. _Sergeant's _honor." He said, sounding exasperated and repeating the hand gesture from before. "Satisfied?"

Kel smirked. This was the Dom she knew. "For now." She replied cooly. Then the smirk faltered, and she was about to further interrogate Dom about her appearance when a familiar cheeping filled her ears. Several people looked up and watched as a large flock of sparrows descended from the air, scattering to land in various places around Kel. Three of the birds that were fairly new additions to the flock and had yet to be named selected Kel as a perch, settling gracefully onto her shoulders. Nari, the flock's leader, perched atop Dom's head. Apparently they had decided to join the party. 

The onlookers stared at the two of them in surprise. Several people put a hand over their mouths, and a light chuckling sound filled the air. Even Yuki and Neal couldn't help themselves. 

Kel's head sank between her shoulders, and she looked down at the ground, her cheeks burning. '_Gods, why me?'_

Soon the moment passed, however, and the party buzzed with conversation. Slowly, Kel turned her head to see Dom's reaction. He sat quietly, staring ahead of him at nothing in particular, his face blank. _'Oh...'_ she thought, biting her lower lip. '_He doesn't look happy...'_

Slowly, however, his expression changed. His eyes crinkled, and he began to shake, obviously trying very hard not to laugh. Kel blinked and stared at him, puzzled. Had he gone mad?... 

She asked him as much, and he turned to her, a grin on his face. Kel's stomach did a quick flip-flop, and she silently cursed Dom for his good looks. The friendship between him and herself was strictly platonic, and she planned to keep it that way -- she didn't need a repeat of the terrible, unreturned crush she'd had on the sergeant in her years as a squire.

"Well, you have to admit," Dom said, holding back more laughter, "it _was_ pretty funny."

Kel frowned at him. "Speak for yourself! I'll bet people will start calling me 'The Sparrow Girl' from now on. You watch."

Dom raised a brow at her. "You'd rather they call you 'Protector of the Small'?"

Kel laughed: he had a point.

+ + + 

A/N: @_@; And that, ladies and gentlemen, was Pheep's pathetic attempt at vague, unrealized romance. Laugh. Laugh LONG and HARD. Still, I did work fairly hard on it and read over quite a few times, so I hope you didn't find it to be quite that awful. By the way, in case any of you were put off by the little paragraph about Kel not wanting to get together with Dom, keep this in mind: Things rarely go exactly as planned. ^_^ Muaha. REVIEW, PLEASE!

~Pheep


	3. New Developments

@@ Hah...So, the dialogue in chapter 2 didn't stink? Seriously? Good T_T This is very relieving. Now, I know that Dom may have seemed a bit OOC when he was talking with Kel, but you have to keep in mind that his brain was about as good as chopped sushi at the time. XD Ah, yes, dance, my little puppets, dance! 

Well, okay...Technically, Tamora Pierce's puppets...But the ficcy is mine! (Nice disclaimer, huh?)

Bon Appetit!

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Daybreak

Chapter 3 -- New Developments

+ + +

It was late afternoon when they finally reached New Hope. Kel dismounted Hoshi at the town gates, the whoops and cheers of men filling her ears. The journey back had been a hard one; it had snowed heavily for a day and a half as soon as they had left Corus, stopping for only a couple of hours at a time. The roads had been snowy and in a few places, blanketed with ice, but Kel and the two squads accompanying her had continued on, regardless. It wasn't as though they had had a choice, really: the blizzard had hit the capital the hardest, making the ride back near-impossible. 

The town gates creaked open, and Kel strode through the snow-dusted streets of New Hope, Hoshi's reigns in hand. A slow smile spread across her lips; after almost two weeks of traveling, it was good to be somewhere so familiar. The two squads, led by Sergeant Jacut and herself, joined Kel in the streets, off to stable their exhausted charges. Walking among them was Neal, who was slowly leading a pair of horses down the road, and Yuki, who was all but slumping against one of them. After their wedding, Neal had proclaimed that since Yuki was now officially his wife, and since New Hope was officially a town, that he had every right to bring her back to live alongside him, thank you very much. There had been some fussing over the weather at first, but Yuki had ended up being less of an inconvenience in their ride home than her husband - who was, however elated, still prone to at least some complaining.

Kel handed over Hoshi's reigns to Tobe, who was already riding Peachblossom, then walked unsteadily towards headquarters, Jump and the sparrows in tow. She opened the door to her bedchambers and hobbled towards her bed, eyes already half-closed: she was completely drained. The orange and gray cat, now named "Hime" by Kel after the Yamani word for 'princess', lay curled up in a furry ball on the bedsheets. Kel paid the dozing creature no mind; that was where it usually slept. Kel buried herself under the warm covers, and soon girl and cat laid side by side on the bed, fast asleep. It was good to be back.

+ + +

"Oh, sergeant?..." Sir Raoul of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak, commander of the King's Own, knocked five times on the door to Dom's bedchambers at fort Steadfast. He stood, waiting quietly. No response.

"Sergeant Domitan?" His voice was sing-song and cheery. Too cheery. Slowly, very slowly, Dom approached the door. He opened it a crack, then a tad farther, and peeked his head out from behind it, staring timidly up at the warm smile on Roul's face. He shuddered involuntarily._ 'This is the end...'_ "Yes, my lord?"

"Ah, good, you're here after all. If you would let me inside?"

Dom quickly stepped aside, swinging the door open as Raoul stepped in. A comforting smile was still plastered on the large man's face, and Dom felt his dread sink in even further. Raoul sat down in a nearby armchair, and Dom sat in one across from it, keeping his eyes on Raoul, watching his face. Not once did the happy expression falter. Dom opened his mouth to speak, but Raoul was quicker.

"Dom, I'd like to discuss some of the events that transpired at my bachelor party." He began, his tone businesslike as he leaned back in his chair.

Dom paused, swallowing hard. "Y-yes, my lord?..."

"You see, sergeant, I'm afraid that in the midst of all the merry-making, there was...a considerable amount of damage done to my living quarters."

"Er, I'm very sorry to hear that, My Lord..."

"Yes...Are you aware, Sergeant Domitan, that you yourself were responsible for quite a bit of that damage?"

"My lord--"

"Dom? Please be quiet."

Dom looked down, his hands clasped tightly together. No escaping now. Raoul grinned down at him, a frightening gleam in his brown-black eyes. "Very good. Now, I've thought very carefully, and if I'm correct, I believe that the things your squad destroyed were worth, altogether, approximately fifty gold crowns. 

Dom's eyes bored into the stone floor of his bedchamber. He cringed inwardly. Fifty gold crowns was nothing to sneeze at...

"Now. Dom. Look at me."

He did, reluctantly. Raoul was still as calm as ever: Dom saw this as a very bad sign.

"I have decided to fine each of you -- you, and your squad -- five crowns each, an equally split amount of the fifty crowns you all owe me. Here is my proposition for you: if you were to pay me an extra five crowns, I could be persuaded to let all of you go free of punishment. How does this sound to you?"

Dom stared at him, dumbfounded. No punishments? At all? He ran a hand through his dark hair, taking a moment to compose himself before responding. "I think that would be quite acceptable, my lord."

Raoul smiled again. "Wonderful. I'm glad that we came to this agreement." He got to his feet, and took a step towards the door. He paused. "Oh, and Dom?"

"Yes, my lord?"

"I also wanted to tell you that your squad has been assigned to New Hope for the winter. I've already informed all of your men."

Dom blinked. "All of winter, my lord?" He asked, eyebrows raised. This was an unusual assignment. Why such a long period of time?

"Yes. Even if their townspeople are well-trained, New Hope still has the one of the lowest counts of actual soldiers out of all the forts in the area, and one of the largest amounts of land. Squads are also being sent from Mastiff and Northwatch, though those mostly go to the other, less fortified towns in the area."

"Any particular reason?" Dom asked, suddenly interested. 

Raoul turned to him, and leaned against one of the nearest chair's arms. "You've heard of the 'powerful new mage' that joined the ranks of Tortall and did away with Blayce?"

Dom smiled a little. Word of Kel's triumph over Blayce had spread quickly through Scanra, though the stories told there were quite different from what had actually happened. "Why, yes, I believe I have heard something of the sort."

"Well, apparently King Maggur has heard this news as well..." Raoul slumped against the arm of the chair, sliding into its seat. "He isn't taking it very well, to put it mildly. There was a very thorough search of Scanra recently, for undiscovered holders of the gift. Almost all found were drafted," he said, his face grave, "If a child found there is older than 7, and possesses a gift that can be used in battle...they send him or her to training as war mages. Many are to be sent into battle after just months of training, or so we've heard..."

Impulsively, Dom drew the sign against evil over his chest. "Terrible..."

Raoul sighed. "Yes...Nevertheless, Tortall must be prepared for this turn of events. The City of the Gods is assigning many of its mages to various other territories for added magical protection, and Veralidaine the Wildmage has blessed us with hundreds of animal lookouts at the border, as well as airborne spies."

Dom nodded, his eyes pensive. "And we're spreading out soldiers according to land mass so that the numbering will be more even..."

"Right. Most of the men sent from this fort are going to either New Hope or Bearsford. There will be three other squads accompanying yours, though they will be leaving roughly two or three weeks from now." Raoul explained, gaining a confused look from Dom at the last comment.

"And when will my squad be leaving...?"

Raoul stood up once again, making towards the door. "Day after tomorrow."

Dom shot to his feet. "The day after--!? But my lord, the roads..."

"Oh, yes, Dom, I'm quite aware of that. Don't worry, though. It shouldn't take you more than, oh, maybe a week's journey, maybe two. Let's just hope it doesn't snow _again_." The grave, serious tone had left Raoul's voice, and was replaced by a jovial sort of lightness Dom was sure he didn't like.

"But..."

"Goodbye, Dom! I'd start packing soon!" He called merrily, and slammed the door behind him.

Dom stood, frozen, his mouth hanging open. A moment or two later, he clamped it shut, and his dark eyebrows came together. "...That...sneaky...little..."

The shrill whistling of harsh winds outside interrupted his thoughts, and he glanced back at the nearest window. Snowflakes whirled about crazily in the air.

Dom swore and went to fall against his bed, and pressed his face into the nearest pillow. Raoul had gotten him **good** this time.

"Damnit..."

+ + +

Kel strolled through New Hope, freshly polished glaive in hand. A calm cerulean glow filled the predawn sky, blue light falling onto the point of her weapon and her unkempt, barely-brushed hair. It was the day after her return from the palace. Nobody expected her to be back out of bed so soon.

Nobody, that is, save the spear-wielding Tobeis Boone. Kel sighed quietly when she saw him walking towards her, ready for training, his dark eyes eager. 

"I think you know me a little _too_ well at this point." she informed him, once he was in hearing distance. The boy shrugged in response, a tiny smirk starting at the corners of his mouth. They did their morning practices together, Jump and a few of the sparrows acting as their audience, and Tobe went off to fetch water for the two of them once they were finished. By now the sun was up, coloring the sky a pale pinkish-white, and a handful of New Hope's early risers were already out on the streets, some yawning occasionally, others strolling about and seeming completely refreshed, as though immune to morning grogginess. Kel sat down on a nearby bench, leaning her back against it to rest its aching muscles. Traveling in the snow for so long had certainly taken a toll on her. 

Soon Tobe returned with a full water skin, and handed it over to Kel as he sat down beside her. She drank quickly, draining about half of the water contained in it. She passed it to Tobe. He drank as thirstily as she had, if not more so, emptying the skin and putting it aside. They sat there for a while afterwards, exchanging brief comments and watching the town come to life as time dragged on. After a long time Kel got to her feet, slowly walking back to headquarters, suddenly feeling like a nap. Tobe followed behind her. '_Perhaps I should have stayed in bed, after all...'_ she thought, and covered her mouth to stifle a yawn.

Someone was waiting for her when she came through the headquarters' doors, however. Terrec, the head clerk, waved her over. Curious, Kel sent Tobe away and went to Terrec, leaning one arm against the front of his desk. "What is it?"

"I was waiting to tell you when you had recovered from the trip, my lady. We received word from Sir Raoul of Goldenlake while you were away, and from Lord Wyldon of Cavall; reinforcements are being sent in from Steadfast and Mastiff, six squads in all. They're to stay with us 'till winter's end, if not longer."

Kel's eyebrows raised. "Six more squads? Whatever for?"

Terrec cleared his throat. "Well, you see..." he explained the new situation with Scanra to Kel, and told her of how soldiers were being newly assigned to towns and under-protected forts. Kel was standing up straight by the time he had finished, her hazel eyes dark and blazing, alive with thought. _With_ sufficient training, war mages were dangerous, young or old; without more than a few months, most of them would barely know how to control their magic, if they were forced to use powerful spells. "This is bad..." she murmured, and looked to Terrec, her expression pensive and stone calm. "When are the new squads arriving?" 

The young clerk flipped through a small pile of notes, quickly looking over a certain page once he found it. "Ah...Mastiff's are to arrive sometime in January, Steadfast's in late December. Wait, there's something else -- one of Steadfast's squads is expected around a week from now."

Kel arched a brow, blinking. "That's odd. Just the one? Why?"

"It doesn't say. Either way, where should we house these men, my lady? Here, at headquarters? We could get the carpenters started on a new building for them as well."

Kel nodded. "That sounds reasonable. Construction on the building could probably be finished by, what, the end of December?"

"Perhaps, give or take a week or so." Terrec replied, his tone thoughtful. "Depends on how many men would be on the job, I suppose."

"Alright, then. And Terrec?"

"Yes, my lady?"

"Would you mind if I left now? I could really use a nap..." Kel blinked groggily, trying to keep her eyelids from drooping. Now she was really tired.

+ + +

A/N: Voila! ^_^ Interesting turn of events, there, eh, my little readers?

...You aren't surprised at all, are you? XD Oh well. I write for myself, not for my public! So there!

Now, in direct contradiction to what I just said: Sorry that it took so long for me to update, you guys!! 11 whole days @_@;; the horror...Why must school occupy so much of my time? Also, to Csporty128, and all the other readers that pointed out the problem with Raoul's getting drunk: Sharp eyes! I completely forgot about that. Anyway, as you can see I've revised chapters 2 and 3, so now that problem's good and fixed.

One more thing: I hope that the war-related stuff I wrote for this chapter was at least _close_ to acceptable. And yes, it is leading to something. Eventually. ^^;

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(...Review please!** PLEASE. **Don't make me beg.)

__

~Pheep


	4. The Grand Arrival

^_^ Happy Memorial Day everyone! @_@; Thank god for three day weekends. Go. Thank him. NOW. I already did, now it's your turn!

Also. Note that this story now has over TWENTY REVIEWS! Yeees. A fanfic milestone. And only at Chapter three/four, too! *dances*

Anyway. 

~ Enjoy. ~

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Daybreak

Chapter 4: _The Grand Arrival_

+ + +

__

'Ugh...Shut up...Shut UP...'

Half asleep, Dom turned over, trying to block out the noise of his squad fixing breakfast. Gods, it was cold. Two weeks they had been out on the road now -- two long, grueling weeks -- and still they had no clue as to how close they were to New Hope, let alone how much longer it would take to get there. A cold wind blew through camp, stirring up the ground's snowy covering, and Dom shivered, curling up in his tangled bedding. If there ever really came a day when all hell froze over, he was pretty sure it would be something like this. 

Someone called his name, and he cracked an eye open, watching as a pair of feet walked over to him. A hand lowered itself into view, holding out a large chunk of cooked rabbit meat; the smell of the food drifted into Dom's nostrils. It overwhelmed him. He half-lunged, trying to grab the meat from his comrade, only to have it yanked away from him. The man holding it -- Dom thought it might be Wolset -- laughed, and began to dangle the meat at the upper edge of Dom's vision, teasing him. Dom growled and sat up, snatching at his prize, but Wolset was quicker. He stood up, backing away; he was still laughing. Eventually he was able to put on a straight face, but one glance at his enraged commander was all it took to make him break into a shaky grin. He pointed to the fire, where five of the other squad members were gathered; they must have been watching, for many of them seemed to be holding back laughter as well. "There's still some left, if you want it that badly." He said to Dom, his tone mocking. The sergeant, whom was usually so collected, was so easy to provoke in the mornings that it had become the new favorite pastime of his men.

Dom glared up at Wolset and got to his feet, then hobbled over to the fire. He joined the ring of snickering men, sitting down hard in the icy snow and reaching for the last bit of rabbit, his face set into a dangerous-looking scowl. The snickering grew louder, and Dom sighed as he bit down into his breakfast. _'A fine way to start the morning'_, he thought, and shut his eyes as another blast of cold wind came their way. 

Damn that idiot Raoul. They were all probably going to **freeze** to death out here, while he just sat back, all nice and warm in his cozy little _fort_...With his loving _wife_...Dom's scowl deepened, and he tore away savagely at his chunk of meat. That man would _pay_. He wasn't entirely sure how just yet, but he _would_ pay.

"Wolset!!" A voice cried out, interrupting Dom's sulking. He turned his head and watched as Roalden, Dom's other corporal, ran over to them with two other men following close behind him, his eyes wide. He stopped when he reached the fire, breathing heavily, hands bracing his knees.

'_Must have been out scouting'_, Dom figured, looking expectantly at Roalden. What had he found? Enemy fighters? But it seemed unlikely that they'd be risking any battles in this kind of weather...

"It's...It's the Greenwoods...We saw it..." Roalden looked at each of the other men, all of which were staring at him, speechless. "It's far, but not too far. We should be able to get there before nightfall..."

There was a stunned silence, and then the men erupted into a burst of hearty cheers, their loud, happy noises filling the air; some praised a favorite god, while others went on about warm beds and good food. Dom leaned back, shook his head slowly, and let out a deep breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "WELL, IT'S ABOUT TIME," he shouted, and the others cheered even louder than before, shouting their agreement.

Wolset was the first to stop cheering, though a wide, eager grin was still stretched across his face. He looked to Dom, who was sitting a few feet away from him. "When do we leave, Sergeant?" he asked, forgetting in his excitement to use the title of authority as a taunt.

Dom blinked at Wolset, and stared at him as though he had something very strange latched onto his head. "You honestly think I'm going to wait around here any longer than I have to?"

That was all he had to say. Before he could even give the actual order, everybody in the squad was rushing about, packing things away. Somebody doused out the fire, and soon men were running over to mount their steeds, chattering on all the while about New Hope and a good night's rest. Dom was quick to join them, practically leaping onto his mount, a young chocolate brown mare with a long dark mane, dubbed 'Rhapsody' by her owner. Dom sent her into what was almost a gallop, in spite of the weather, not wanting to go any slower for the moment; after all, how much patience could a man have when he was just miles away from civilization, where there were warm baths, regularly served meals, cozy beds, and...

And Kel would be there, too. Feeling an odd jolt of excitement, Dom smiled to himself, and soon had Rhapsody moving in a completely reckless gallop. Maybe this assignment wouldn't be so bad, after all.

+ + + 

Kel sighed, leaning back in her chair. She sat alone in headquarters' small study, tapping a black-tipped quill against the wooden surface of her desk. Sprawled out in front of her lay a long sheet of blank parchment, and beside it, an open inkwell. The clerks were all busy with various tasks, so she was left to write the progress report that had been requested from Lord Wyldon herself. Well, good. She had been bored anyway.

Not that this was any better. _'The food is stored, the people are safe, the animals are all healthy...' _Kel twitched, suddenly feeling very restless. _'The squads still haven't gotten here - no surprise there...'_ she began to stand, then sat down again, fighting back the urge to get up and pace. _'And not a single attack in -weeks-...So what is there for me to report!?' _She groaned, and lightly hit her head against the desk, frustrated. Life at New Hope was nice, but oh, it was dull. Dull. Dull. Dull. She repeated the word in her mind like a mantra, over and over, banging her head each time to keep up the rhythm.

Fortunately, she was soon distracted by a loud, high-pitched chorus of chirping which came streaming in from an open window. Kel's head snapped up at the noise, and she stumbled over to the windowsill, poking her head out in search of her sparrows. That was an alarm, wasn't it?

Finding them hovering about five feet above the window, Kel raised her head to get a good look. She blinked up at them, and her eyes widened marginally. They were flying around in small, tight circles, the signal that stood for 'friends'.

"Finally..." Kel muttered to herself. The first squad was a week late already, though she supposed that was to be expected, considering the road conditions. She glanced over at the town gates, which a group of men were already forcing open, probably under Merric's orders. No one was waiting outside yet, but Kel figured it was only a matter of time as she raced down the stairs, moving quickly in the hopes of being there to greet them as they arrived. She burst through the double-door entrance, and walked briskly down the mucky, slush-lined streets, watching the land beyond the gateway as tiny blurs of moving somethings came into view on the horizon. Most of the townspeople were unexcited by the visitors, having already heard the news from Kel over dinner weeks ago, but some of the more eager residents were scattered along the side of the road, looking expectantly down ahead of them as the riders approached. 

At last Kel reached the open gates, joining Merric and the group of soldiers already gathered around it. Soon Tobe appeared, running over to stand at her side; his clothes were covered with bits of hay, and clearly gave away where he had been spending his afternoon. Kel fixed a steady gaze on the ten distant blots moving toward the town. Soon they became clearer, and she was able to make out the silhouettes of men and horses in the setting sun. Closer and closer they came, until Kel could see details and distinct features as well; something about the squad jogged Kel's memory, but she wasn't sure what, until she looked to the rider furthest to her right. He was going at a slightly slower pace than the other nine, and his horse seemed more fatigued than the others, despite its healthy-looking physique. That horse...she knew it, somehow...

Kel gasped. Her eyes darted away from the horse -- _"Rhapsody"_, she remembered -- and up to the man that was riding her, who was finally close enough to see clearly. Dom, his helm cradled against one arm, had definitely seen better days. His skin was so pale from being out in the cold that it had almost turned white, save the pink patches on his cheeks. His dark hair was messy and wet from riding through snow, and short brown stubble had grown on the lower half of his face, the result of not shaving for at least a week. Kel stared at him as he and the squad approached the gates. He seemed...pre-occupied. He scanned the area around the entrance, his gaze shifting slowly, until at last it rested on Kel herself. Their eyes locked, and she froze as he smiled broadly at her from a few yards away. After a few seconds Kel tried to look away and break eye contact, but found that she could not; and so she stood there, continuing to gaze into Dom's two very blue eyes, feeling awkward and, for some reason, incredibly excited. 

Finally, the squad came through the gates, Dom now riding in front. He looked away now and then as he replied to the various welcomes called out by the soldiers, but his eyes would end up returning to Kel each time, making her feel increasingly nervous, though she had no idea why. Soon he and the others dismounted from their horses, and Dom handed Rhapsody's reigns over to Wolset, sending him away to stable her along with his own steed. By now the initial excitement had died down and most of the welcomers had gone, while the rest of the squad was off at the stables. Dom strode over to Kel, wearing a grin that threatened to split his face in two. He looked strangely energized for a man who had been riding for what had probably been several hours on end, and Kel couldn't help but take in some of the eagerness that seemed to radiate from his eyes. 

The eyes. Why couldn't she stop staring at the eyes?! _'Look away, look away...'_ she thought helplessly, pleading her own eyes to obey. Sadly, they did not, and it took a moment for her to register that Dom had said something to her. She shook her head a few times, clearing her mind and shutting her eyes tightly, before opening them again to see Dom staring at her curiously, one eyebrow raised. "Kel...?"

"Yes?" she asked, blinking a couple of times and pushing her hair back behind her ears. "I'm sorry, Dom, what did you say?"

"Er, just 'hello'..."

"Oh."

An annoying pause followed, and Kel mentally kicked herself several times, trying to restart her brain. What was going on here?

"Is something wrong, Kel?" Dom's voice interrupted her thoughts, and she blinked, before shaking her head again. 

"No, I...I think I'm just tired." She lied. In truth, she had no idea why she was feeling so strange. "Anyway, how are you? I didn't know your squad had been assigned here." She said hastily, wanting terribly to strike up a conversation.

"Well, I'm pretty tired myself. Along with cold, hungry, and losing the feeling in my legs." He said, his tone falsely cheery. "But other than that, I'm just dandy...You didn't know it was us? I'd imagine my lord would at least mention..." he trailed off, putting a hand over his mouth to stifle a yawn. "Uhm, d'you by any chance have rooms set up for us yet?...Ones with beds?..."

"Oh! Right...Well, the construction for the new building isn't done just yet, but there's plenty of room in headquarters for now." Ah, fine, now things were back up to speed. Much better.

"Alright, thanks..." he looked around for a moment, his mouth moving silently along with his thoughts, before frowning slightly and turning back to Kel. "Er, where exactly IS headquarters? I only know the layout of Haven, and..." he stopped, immediately regretting what he had just said. Haven...was definitely an off-limits subject. He watched as Kel's face went blank, then terribly still, and her hazel eyes flashed with something that stung. It was a brief opening, though, and the expression was soon replaced with a carefully formed smile. "Oh, it's not that far. Come on, I'll show you..." with that she turned, and started to walk away. Dom followed, and had to run for a second to catch up with her; she was walking very quickly.

"Um, Kel, I..."

"Hm?"

"I'm--I'm sorry."

"What for?" Kel asked, and Dom waited for the false, questioning smile that he knew would follow. It didn't. Kel started to walk even faster, not even glancing back at him as she went. Bad sign. Very bad sign. She was even more vulnerable about it than he had thought...

It was strange, really. Kel always came off as a strong person, and in Dom's opinion, she was probably the strongest person he knew -- which was saying a lot, considering he was an acquaintance of the legendary Lioness. But sometimes, he thought that maybe she was a little too strong for her own good. Where did all of those emotions end up spilling out? She couldn't just keep them bottled up forever...

Could she?

"Kel--"

"We're here."

The streets were empty now that night had fallen, and the two of them stood alone, right outside of headquarters. Now Kel finally looked back at Dom. Her expression was impossible to read, until a small smile settled onto her features. It was a tired smile, but even more, it was a strained one. "Your rooms start on the third floor. You can pick one out for yourself." She swung open the doors and started upstairs, stopping at the second floor and going into the nearest room. "G'night."

"...Goodnight."

The door shut behind her with a quiet slam, and Dom stared at it for a moment, frowning deeply. Suddenly having far too much to think about, he made his way up the stairs, moving slowly; his feet felt like cement blocks. Feeling drained, he slipped into one of the rooms on the third floor, not bothering to choose one by comparison. He was just too tired.

And yet somehow, he didn't see how he was going to sleep.

+ + +

A/N: *Yawns* Woo yeah, finally done. Goodnight. Review, please. *Hobbles off to bed X_x*

(Also: If ANY of you...know of a description of Dom's horse that came from the _books_...please keep it to yourselves. ^_^ I could not find one, so live with it. Rhapsody is his second horse. Perfectly understandable.)

Ehe.

~Pheep

See you in Chapter 5... 


	5. Interesting

Man. This is one -late- chapter. o_o;;; I'm **really** sorry, everybody...I don't know why, I just fell into this awful slump. Might have been because I was going through my last month of school. 

Not happy with that excuse? Well, fine. Let's go to the other one. _I'm extremely lazy._

But, I think we knew that ^^; Anyway, I'll try and make it so this chapter has a quick follow up. Don't worry -- I'll make sure it has romance. XD I'll try very hard,anyway.

Enjoy! (Pleeaase...*begins to pray*)

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Daybreak

Chapter 5 -- _Interesting_

+ + +

It was the second day of the Midwinter Festival, and a fresh blanket of frost was spread over New Hope. A few children played in the thin layer of snow, somehow managing to find enough to make a decent snowball. Meanwhile, adults roamed the streets with a more purposeful air, most off doing errands of some sort. Nealan of Queenscove gazed down at the peaceful scene from his office window that afternoon, a moody glint in his dark green eyes. 

He brooded. He brooded over his job, over the town, over the war, and several other less-than-perfect things in his life. Steadily his mood worsened. Soon he found himself looking around for something he could kick, that he wouldn't regret damaging later - his eyes swept over his desk, messy as usual, and then stopped, slowly coming to rest upon a flat wooden box that was sitting among the scattered papers. 

Neal's expression softened. On a sudden impulse, he slipped down from the windowsill he was perched upon, and walked over to his desk. He reached out and fingered the box's lid for a moment, running a hand over the smooth, polished wood. Flicking open the metal clasp that locked it, he raised the lid, eyes misting over as he gazed down at the object lying before him. It was a large folded fan, the _shukusen_ that Yuki had given to him after his Ordeal...Neal picked it up and held it in his hand, wary of its razor-sharp edges as he unfolded it. 

Staring at the intricate designs printed onto the fan's front, Neal's mind wandered back to the day of his ordeal. He remembered the things he had gone through inside of those stone walls, nightmarish, horrible things...He remembered emerging at last, scared witless, completely exhausted...And then he saw Yuki, watching him from across the room...Yuki, shyly looking down as she gave him her _shukusen_...Neal leaned against his desk, closing his eyes and away into his own little world...

Only to be thrown out of it just a few seconds later. A series of loud knocks at the door broke through his daydreams, and he jumped slightly, before turning to fix a death glare on the tall slab of wood. This did not seem to perturb it very much, though the next few knocks, more insistent this time, caused it to tremble slightly. He walked over to it briskly, muttering to himself and swinging it open to face none other than Dom, who looked unconvincingly cheery for some reason. Neal scowled, giving his cousin the same vicious glare that had been directed at the door; his moodiness had returned with a vengeance. If that idiot even _tried_ calling him--

"Hey there, Meathead!" Dom held his hand up in a sort of wave. "How's my favorite cousin?" he asked, a bright smile plastered onto his face. 

Neal eyed him warily for a moment. "What do you want, Dom?"

The smile was quickly dropped, and Dom strode into the office before Neal could stop him. "Well, actually..." he began, sitting down in a nearby chair. Neal raised a brow suspiciously, detecting a nervous tone in his voice. Aha. So he did want something. 

"...I...need your advice." Dom said slowly. He looked down at his shoes, which were apparently very interesting to him at the moment. Though the words had been strained, and spoken very quietly, Neal had still been able to hear them sitting a few feet away. He stared at Dom for a while, his eyes widening slighty. That was _not_ what he had been expecting. At all. 

"...Come again?" he asked after a while, feigning a shocked expression. There was a smug undertone in his voice. This was one of the only times Dom had ever come to his 'Meathead' cousin for help, and Neal planned to take full advantage of the occasion.

Dom glared at him. "Shut up, Neal, I'm not going to say it again." He snapped, and Neal was surprised to note that he had actually been called by his name. He put his smugness aside. Whatever Dom had come for, it had to be important...

There as a long pause, and Dom fidgeted slightly, opening his mouth once or twice and failing to say anything, before finally starting in a feeble way, "So...It's about...um..." 

Neal craned his neck slightly, waiting. Dom looked away, sheepish, and the rest of the words came streaming out of his mouth in what was barely above a mumble. "I don't know what to get Kel for Midwinter." 

Neal blinked.

"...Is that all?"

Dom glanced up at him, and blinked back. "...Yes..." he said, looking uneasy.

Neal arched an eyebrow, puzzled. "So...why exactly are you coming to _me_?"

Dom fixed him with an odd look, his brow creasing. "Well, come on, Neal, you've known her years longer than _I_ have!" He made a vague sweeping gesture with his hand to punctuate his words. "You must know of _something_ she would like!"

Neal sighed and got up to walk over to his cousin, looking thoughtful as he leaned back against the nearest wall. It was an odd request, really, and...now that he thought about it... "Well...I can't remember anything that she _really_ liked...I was never good with this sort of thing anyway," he admitted after a while, his tone slow and slightly reluctant. Dom clearly wasn't happy with this answer, and he sighed quietly, leaning forward on the edge of his chair and pushing his hands back through his hair. Studying Dom's grave expression, Neal found himself starting to feel sorry for him: he was obviously under a lot of stress, for one reason or another. Trying to concentrate once again, Neal raked his mind for answers, until a very obvious solution took shape there.

"But..." Neal said, pausing for effect. "I'll bet Yuki would know."

Dom's eyes widened slightly, and he considered this, looking a bit more hopeful. "...Not a bad idea..." 

Suddenly he was on his feet. "Do you know where she is?" he asked. Neal thought about this for second, nodded, and directed him to try headquarters; the man was already out the door by the time Neal had finished speaking, and he closed it behind him with an unsettlingly loud slam. 

Flinching at the noise, Neal slipped into the chair Dom had been sitting in, shaking his head slowly. What had all that been about? Dom had never been a holiday nut before, at least, not that he could remember...

Reflecting on his cousin's strange behavior, his thoughts were soon interrupted once again by the sound of knocking. Throwing up his hands, he got to his feet and strode over to the door once again_. 'My, I'm certainly popular today'_, he thought wryly, throwing the door open. Kel almost rapped on his nose then, and he jerked back, startled. He cupped a hand protectively over his face. "Clumsy brute!" he accused, fixing her with a terrified, goggle-eyed stare.

Kel hid a grin. "Sorry, Neal." 

"You should be." Neal replied haughtily, lowering his hand and showing her inside. "You almost damaged my beautiful face." 

Kel rolled her eyes and walked over to the window. She leaned in, arms crossing over the windowsill, green-hazel eyes taking in the view of the town - looking straight ahead rather than down. Though Kel had gotten over her fear of heights years ago, she would never like them. 

It was a while before she spoke. "...Neal, I was wondering if you could help me out with something."

Neal, who was sitting again by now, looked at her curiously. "What is it?"

Kel turned to face him, hands bracing her against the sill. "What sort of present should I get Dom for Midwinter?"

Neal stared at her. His expression went slack. "..._Dom_?"

Kel nodded, not seeming to notice his surprise. "Yes, Dom. I've already gotten gifts for everyone else, see, but I can't think of anything for him. So..."

Neal no longer looked shocked. Instead, he had become the picture of skepticism, one winged brow furrowed, the other raised quizzically. "So...You want _me_ to help you." 

Kel blinked at him, puzzled. "Well, yes. What's the matter?"

"What makes you think I'd have any more ideas than you?" he asked.

Kel shrugged. "I don't know, you're his cousin, I thought maybe you'd know something!"

About to reply, Neal paused, and blinked in surprise. Hadn't he just had this conversation? 

He heard a sigh. Looking over at Kel, Neal saw that her face had gone Yamani-smooth, a clear sign that she was annoyed. "You could at least **try** to help." She said, sounding testy.

Neal raised his eyebrows at her. Casting his eyes to the side, he let out his breath in a huff. "Oh, alright." He said. The two of them fell silent, each concentrating on their own thoughts. A minute passed.

"...I've got nothing." Neal announced, stretching out in his seat like a cat. 

Kel groaned quietly and muttered a foreign curse word under her breath. "Wonderful." She told him, more loudly.

Neal glanced over at her, surprised; it was rare for her to be so openly aggravated. '_She's really serious about this',_ he realized. 

Suddenly he felt guilty. "I mean, I guess you could give him armor, or equipment or something..." he offered quickly, hoping it might help. Kel blinked at him. Unfortunately, Neal finished the thought aloud as well. "Though, it'd be hard to get anything too great out here...And it's not like you could travel anywhere in this weather, at least, not very quickly..."

Kel wasn't listening to him anymore, though. Arms crossed, she gazed down at the floor, apparently lost in thought. Suddenly she grinned, and her eyes lit up as she looked up at Neal. 

"...I think I've got it." She said slowly, looking eager. Neal blinked at her, and gave a relieved smile. "Well, there you go!" he said, leaning back in his chair. "Problem solved. So what's the plan?"

But Kel just shook her head. "You'll see." She said, still smiling broadly. She made for the door. "I'm gonna go now," she said quickly. "See you later."

"Er, okay...Bye." Neal called. Kel waved and left, shutting the door behind her. Neal stared at it, his head tilting to one side.

He sat. He thought.

So far today, he had been approached by two people. Each of these people had wanted advice, which was odd enough in itself, considering he wasn't exactly the type one would usually go to for advice. No, Neal was more the type one would approach for literary information, perhaps a philosophical discussion - though nobody had ever asked for the latter in years. He was also the type one would come to if they happened to have a broken limb, or a persistent lice problem, maybe a simple flesh wound...

Anyway, the point was, it was quite strange. Stranger yet, they had each asked for the exact same advice, except concerning the other person. Never mind what a baffling coincidence this was. What Neal wanted to know, was _why_ in the world they would be so concerned about what to get each other. So concerned, in fact, that they would come to _him_ for help.

It was a very troubling matter.

He sat. He thought.

He raised his eyebrows.

__

'Unless...'

"No..." Neal whispered, staring out at the wall thoughtfully. But that had to be it, didn't it? It was really almost painfully obvious, he didn't know how those two...

As he thought these things, his mouth was slowly curving into a rather demonic-looking grin.

"...Interesting..."

+ + +

A/N: Ah, Neal. XD Always the first to realize these things.

This was a fun chapter to write, really (even if it went VERY SLOWLY). Neal's character...n_n Gotta love it. Hope no one was too OOC... But remember, holiday stress can do pitiful things to one's mental state. ^^ Anyway, I hope you all liked this. I really do. 

Really. 

...And you know, it's terrible to leave me in suspense like this. It really is. Now, do you how you can ease my poor, deranged mind?! 

You can **review**! O_O That's right. Click the button, write a little, click the other button...It's that simple. Wow.

...More to come, of course. I love you all! XD

**__**

~Pheep

(P.S.: Special announcement! Okay, this is about the whole "Raoul drinking" thing in chapter 2. O.o I know that was a plot hole, and chapter 3 had a fairly good excuse for it, but Pheep is a perfectionist. So. Chapters 2 and 3 are now REVISED! You can go back and reread them, or you can just read the summary of them here: 

~They have the party in Raoul's room. Raoul doesn't get drunk, but everyone else does and they trash his stuff :D Hence, Raoul still has a reason to get revenge on Dom and his squad. Voila.~)

Okay,good. And remember: REVIEWS!


	6. The Fourth Morning

It's funny, really, how I thought summer vacation would actually enable me to write more than usual. Haah. Laugh with me, reader-people. Sure, it gives me time. And how do I use that time?

To slack off! Every minute of every hour of every single DAY! Of course, I never believe that's what's actually going to happen until it...actually _is_ happening. *Dramatic sigh.* The trials of summer vacation...T_T

Anyway...I hope more of my old reviewers come back once I'm regularly updating again ^^; And I'm truly grateful to the people who reviewed for chapter 5. @_@; I'm not sure if this new chapter would have come nearly as quickly if it weren't for your support. It actually could have been up a few days earlier, but I was fussing over the length of it for a while, so....^^;;

Anyway. Enjoy!

(Also: Note the _super-original_ chapter title.)

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Daybreak

Chapter 6 -_ The Fourth Morning_

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And so the days passed by, slowly and peacefully for some...and horrifically quickly for others.

Dom belonged to the latter camp. Neal had been very helpful, he really had - and that in itself was quite an astounding feat, in Dom's opinion - and Yuki had certainly been just as willing to help, if not more so. But still...

Could he really be _that_ sure that Kel would like it?...This question had nagged at Dom relentlessly, and because of it he had spent the last day and a half switching from gift to gift - under Yuki's supervision, of course. So far, though, this process had only succeeded in making him even more uncertain.

__

'What am I so worried about?...' he asked himself, giving his bowl of bread pudding a searching gaze, as if expecting the answer to appear there before his eyes. '_Kel's my friend. She'd still be my friend if I gave her a bad present. She's not petty. **You're overreacting.**' _he thought firmly. He continued to stare down into his pudding, defying it to argue with this fine logic. Satisfied at its silence, he began to dig into it with his spoon.

It was the fourth morning of the Midwinter Festival. The mess had been tastefully adorned in red and gold for the week, and small bushels of holly had been hung along the walls; Dom had admired the decorations when he had first seen them. Now, they were only a grim reminder of his situation. 

And what exactly was his 'situation', anyway? He wondered about this, spoon hanging from his tightly closed mouth. This was Midwinter, a time of year he usually rather enjoyed. And yet, for some reason, his brain had decided to drive him completely crazy over a single present this year.

__

'Or rather, over a single person,' a small part of him couldn't help but think. As a follow-up, an image of Kel's face immediately popped into Dom's head. He blinked hard, took the spoon from his mouth, and quickly returned to his pudding, trying very, very hard to focus all of his attention on eating what remained of it. He had found that the lady knight was in his thoughts far too often to be normal these days, and he could not for the life of him figure out why. 

Well, that wasn't exactly right. The truth was that he didn't _want_ to figure it out. 

Completely absorbed in his pudding, Dom tuned out the many conversations going on around him; Neal and Yuki's voices faded into the background, as well as those of his squad. In this state of mind he completely failed to notice the person approaching their table, all the way up until she slid into a seat straight across from him. Looking up in surprise, he gave Kel a welcoming smile as she greeted a groggy Neal with a brightness that didn't seem to set with him all that well. Seeing Dom, she smiled back at him, already starting on her breakfast. "Good morning, Dom."

"Good morning." He replied, reaching for his glass of water. 

"I still don't see just what's so good about it." Neal told them, looking cross as he rubbed the sleep out of one of his eyes. This received a glare from Dom, and a rather pronounced eyeroll from Kel.

"Stuff it, Meathead." 

"Quiet down, Meathead."

Surprised, the two of them turned to stare at each other. Slowly, they both started to grin.

"Picking up a few new habits, I see?" Dom asked wryly.

"You're a bad influence on me." Kel replied, though her grin only broadened as she spoke. Dom pretended to cringe, putting on a pained expression that was almost convincing. "That hurts, Kel," he informed her, throwing her the most pathetic-looking gaze he could conjure up at the moment. The reaction was a good one; Kel was clearly fighting not to laugh. Composing herself, she smoothed her face out, raising her eyebrows skeptically at Dom.

He blinked at her, losing his pitiful look. "...You know, you really do look like My Lord when you do that." he said after a while.

The corners of Kel's mouth twitched slightly. "I'm flattered. Really."

"You know what I mean!"

"No. No, I don't think I do. Care to explain?" she asked him cooly. Dom just shook his head, looking exasperated and heaving a dramatized sigh. 

Neal and Yuki, meanwhile, had been watching this exchange with great interest. 

"...Well, isn't that _cute_." Neal drawled, a lazy smirk spreading across his features. Yuki put a hand over her mouth to hide her grin. 

This was received with identical blank stares. "...What do you mean?" Kel finally asked, blinking in confusion. Dom could only stare at his cousin, several different emotions playing over his face.

Neal blinked, then watched them thoughtfully for a moment, considering. A moment later his smirk returned, wider than ever. "...Oh, nothing." he said lightly, and was fascinating himself with his meal a moment later. Yuki smiled cryptically, glancing at her husband and quickly following suit.

Dom scowled, annoyed; his cousin's lofty attitude was extremely tiresome, especially so early in the day. Kel, meanwhile, looked amazingly unruffled, and she fixed Neal with a suspicious glare. "Is that so?" she asked placidly. "It didn't sound like nothing to me." 

"Well, then, you must be short of hearing, my dear." Neal told her pleasantly, flashing her an angelic smile. This provoked a much icier glare on Kel's part, at which he shivered and shrunk down in his seat. "Oh, I'm so frightened." he cried in a loud monotone, much to the entertainment of his wife and several other people sitting at the large table.

Kel observed him silently for a moment, her expression ominously calm. A cold, tiny smirk touched her lips, and she reached for her fork. "You should be." She said, brandishing the silverware like a deadly weapon. 

Dom laughed, marveling at how formidable Kel managed to look armed only with eating utensils. "Got any last words, dear cousin?" he asked, giving Neal a sinister-looking grin.

"...Yes..." Neal began in a quavering voice; his green eyes were wide as saucers, and he gazed up at the fork as though it were an executioner's axe. Not for the first time, Dom was struck with the idea of how successful Neal would be if he had become a theater player instead of a knight. "Please don't kill me! I have a wife and three children! And a dog, too!" he begged, clasping his hands together. "Have mercy!" 

Yuki cuffed him lightly. "Liar!" she accused, her eyes crinkling with hidden laughter.

Neal turned away from the fork and the others, snatching up the Yamani's hand in his and patting it reassuringly. "Come now, love, you knew we couldn't have kept this a secret forever." He coaxed, staring into her eyes soulfully and somehow managing to keep his face straight through it all. 

The surprise attack got a laugh out of Yuki, but she sobered quickly, drawing herself up and slapping Neal's hand away. "I don't know why I ever married you." She proclaimed hotly, tossing her head back slightly and glaring down at him. 

Neal grinned crookedly. "Because of my good looks, charm and obvious intelligence?" he suggested, running a hand through his hair for effect. Dom coughed, quickly putting a hand to his mouth to keep the water he had just drank from escaping. Kel shook her head, laughing silently, still holding the fork directly over Neal's skull.

Yuki rolled her eyes. "...Probably only the first of those three, I should think." She said after a while, thoughtful, then watched for his reaction. 

Neal gasped quietly. Bringing a hand to his chest, he clutched at his tunic, right over the spot where his heart would be. "Your love for me was all a _lie_?!" he exclaimed, shrinking down even further and staring up at Yuki in disbelief. 

She didn't say anything, and gave him a slightly better glare than before. Neal bit his lower lip, and turned sharply back to Dom and Kel. Before she could react, he snatched the fork out of Kel's grasp and held it over his chest with both hands. "Then...I cannot go on living!" he cried out dramatically, and drove the fork down until it touched cloth. Moaning quietly, he toppled over onto the table, his head falling against his outstretched arm. His tongue lolled. Several of Dom's men applauded; they had clearly enjoyed the show. 

Soon the clapping died down, and the squad returned to their breakfasts. Dom, Kel and Yuki stared at Neal's corpse, completely silent. Finally, Kel reached down, took the fork from his open hand, and poked him curiously with its unpointed end a few times. "If only he were always this lively in the mornings..." she remarked quietly, giving him a final prod in the back for good measure. He didn't move. 

Yuki nodded in agreement. "He had better have mentioned me in his will." She said, Yamani etiquette just barely keeping her face straight.

Dom didn't bother holding back his laughter. "Meathead: we hardly knew ye!" he relented. Kel snickered quietly, and Dom looked over at her, grinning. It was then that he noticed something rather peculiar about her, and his grin faded, replaced by a curious frown.

"Kel, why are you wearing gloves?" he asked, leaning in from across the table with interest. And indeed, stretched over Kel's hands was a pair of tightly woven black gloves, reaching up an inch or so past her wrists. Neal, feeling the spotlight had been drawn away from him, sat up now, and gave the gloves an odd look.

Kel blinked, her face going strangely still as she stared back at Dom's curious expression. "Oh...Well, my hands were cold." She explained, suddenly taking a keen interest in her breakfast.

Dom blinked, puzzled. "Inside, though?"

She nodded once, not looking up from her food. Dom and Neal exchanged looks, and Neal leaned in toward her until his eyes were level with hers. "You're lying." He informed her quietly. 

"I'm not." 

"...Can we see your hands, then." Neal said, and despite the phrasing, it was not a request. Kel hesitated, then gave a barely detectable sigh and reached down, yanking one glove off by its fingers.

Dom gasped. Kel's hand was almost like one giant bandage: nearly every finger was wrapped in a thick gauze-like material, as was the upper section of her palm. Blood had stained some of the bandaging, now dull brown-crimson blotches against the white. There was a sharp intake of breath from Neal, and Yuki winced, hissing sympathetically.

"Mithros, it's like the griffin all over again..." Dom murmured. Instinctively, he reached across the table and placed the abused hand palm-up in his own. Studying the wounds with worried eyes, he felt an odd sense of deja vu, though he didn't know why. Neal glared at Kel reproachfully, and she stared back at him for a moment before looking away and saying in a quiet voice, "...I fell down."

Dom blinked. "You _fell down_?" he repeated uncertainly, his blue eyes searching as he looked over her face. It remained unwaveringly calm, even as she looked up at him and nodded. Yuki watched her friend curiously, her expression just as unreadable. 

Neal just snorted. "Oh, come _on_. We've both known that one since we were pages, Kel. You could do better than that, surely." 

"No, really, I did." She said quickly. Neal continued to eye her suspiciously. There was another brief pause before she continued. 

"...I was out on a walk yesterday, and I tripped and...fell into a thorn bush." she explained slowly, turning her head away from Dom now as she spoke to Neal. This was a relief to him; he had found it increasingly hard to concentrate on the conversation when her face was filling his vision. 

Neal regarded her silently for a moment, one brow arched skeptically. "You're still lying." He said flatly.

Kel drew herself up, defiant. "I fell down." She told them again, more firmly this time. 

Neal sighed, shaking his head. "Gods..." he muttered under his breath. There was an uncomfortable silence. After a while, Neal glanced down at Kel's hand, which was still carefully held by Dom. Raising his eyebrows and giving Dom a furtive look, he extended his own hand. Dom blinked in a brief moment of confusion, then colored and quickly released his hold.

Neal took Kel's hand. He deftly unraveled the bandages, and Dom felt his concern steadily growing as each new cut or puncture was revealed. And there were a _lot_ of cuts and puncture marks. So he was incredibly grateful when Neal finally touched the wounds with his gift, leaving them with fresh pink skin. 

"Now the other one." Neal murmured. 

+ + +

A/N: Well! A short-ish chapter, but I rather like it. =D Neal continues to amuse me. I know I made him rather zany back there, but you know, mornings can do that to people. e_e I, for instance, am writing this author's note at 11:35 am. And, you don't want to know when I have last slept. 

Eh...I'll try to have 7 up in the next couple weeks, if I can ^^; As in, if my brain will actually cooperate (for once).

And, people. I'm serious. Listen carefully:

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REVIEW!! 

@_@ *shouts it in your ear* 

It's just so easy...Come on. Boost my ego. You know you want to.

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~Pheep


	7. Madness

Hey everyone! Well, school's in session and I couldn't be happier! Thank god vacation's over!

...Yeah, I just felt like opening that way. (*twitchspasm*) Seemed better than griping about going back, y'know?

So anyway...Yes, it's really chapter 7, not some caffiene-enduced hallucination. Amazed? So am I. I know it took a while...A couple of months, in fact...And I'm really sorry I took so long. But please bear with me, okay? Future chapters might be slow too, but never much more than a month or two. Now, the question on everyone's mind: why is Pheep so very slow these days? Well, we're not entirely sure, though I think that my muse might be cheating on me. It just seems so distant lately...*sniff*

(Thank you to everyone who reviewed chapter 6 - I'm very glad you liked it! Well, hope you like this too.)

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Daybreak

Chapter 7 - _Madness_

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That afternoon, Dom and his squad went on patrol with Merric's group. Riding Rhapsody through the still-snowy woods surrounding New Hope, Dom wondered about his war-horse, Ash, a large gray gelding that he had entrusted in Fort Steadfast's care until his return in spring. He had been injured recently, and even though he had almost fully recovered when their squad had left, Dom hadn't wanted to risk his charge's health out in the snow. 

'_Hope he's given Raoul a good kick for me...'_ he thought cynically, and steered his current steed clear of a fallen branch. After the hardship and suffering he had been forced to endure, it would be a quite a long while before he forgave his dear commander.

The two squads continued on, talking idly with one another, their attention only half-focused on the task of patrolling. New Hope had been remarkably peaceful for the past couple of months, as well as Tortall on the whole; Dom imagined that the weather must be devastating up north, for Scanra to suddenly have such a long lapse in attacking.

__

'But they'll be back eventually. _Maybe with some of their new mages...And with such little training...'_

Frowning slightly, Dom shrugged these dark thoughts as best as he could. No use in brooding. His mind wandered for a while, picking up bits of conversations going on around him. Someone was striking a bet with his friend...another was commenting on the snow likely to come later that night - Dom looked up, now noticing the gray clouds in the sky. A third man was yattering on about a Midwinter party he was invited to...Dom blinked thoughtfully, his mind jumping subjects before he could stop it - Midwinter. Presents. Kel. And finally, Kel's hands. Recalling the events of that morning clearly in his mind, he shifted nervously in his seat. He was worried. Irrationally worried. He wished it would stop. Kel was a tough girl, after all - and that was putting it mildly. She had put up with far worse than torn up hands in the past. And Neal had healed them that morning, right in front of him. He knew this. He did.

And yet he worried. It was strange, but he couldn't help it. And so he gave in, not for the first time that day, and pondered over the same questions all over again. What could have happened? Why had she been trying to hide it? And it was only her hands, as far as he could tell...Though perhaps some of her arms as well, they had been covered by her clothes... 

He then remembered his remark on the baby griffin Kel had nurtured in her years as a squire. Oh, Mithros. She couldn't have _really_ found another one of the damned things, could she?!

Dom held back the smile that came a second later. What was he thinking? This was just silly. He needed to stop thinking about it so much. About her...But whenever he tried, it just got worse. He had Kel on the brain.

Not that thinking of her was unpleasant. It was just troubling that suddenly she was all that he thought about. After all, it wasn't as though he was..._interested_ in Kel or anything like...like that. Oh no. She was just a friend. A close...friend.

...And oh, he was blushing now. He knew he was. Not good...Not good at all. 

__

'No, no, no_...'_ Dom thought desperately, and shook his head a little to try and clear his thoughts, though it wasn't working. This was going too far. Far too far. Far, far too far. Far, far, far--

Dom sighed, rubbing his temples wearily. This was working wonders for his sanity, it really was. Then again, he guessed it was to be expected. It wasn't every day that you realized you felt this way about your best female friend and-- Gods! What had he gotten himself into? This was Kel, for goodness sake! She was his friend, his comrade - he'd known her since she was just a _squire_. This was madness. Complete madness.

Besides, she'd never feel the same way.

"Oh, great. Snow." 

In his sorry state of mind, Dom had completely failed to notice the change in weather. Glancing about, he now saw the white flecks drifting down from the sky, and suppressed a groan. That was all he needed. _'Is the world making everyone miserable today'_, he wondered, _'or am I just special?'_ Another brief look around made him decide on the first idea; none of the men looked very happy at the idea of trotting around in the snow for the rest of the afternoon. 

"Lovely weather, isn't it?" Garet, one of Dom's men, rode up to him. He quirked a brow at the sergeant, a gloomy sort of humor on his face.

Dom hmmed in reply. "Quite lovely. Maybe I'll even get a nice tan to impress the ladies..." he said bitterly.

Garet chuckled. "And how would you accomplish that, by riding out to the desert?"

"Well, it _would_ be warmer there."

"...Good point."

They rode in silence for a while, and the snow covered the ground like a white veil. Frost crunched under horses' hooves, and several of the eighteen other men grumbled to themselves or each other. Dom, who had been briefly distracted from his troubles, sank back into them, losing himself in thought. 

And so he was a little startled when he heard Garet's voice again. "The other Steadfast squads are arriving today. Did you hear?"

Dom blinked. He hadn't. "Really."

Garet smiled ruefully. "Yes...And to think we could have been with them..."

"If we only hadn't given him a party, I _know_..." Dom said heavily, placing a hand to his forehead and pushing back damp hair. "We _really_ need to stop being so nice. There must be a way to get back at him..."

"I'll second that." Garet said immediately, raising an arm. Dom glanced at him, surprised. He hadn't expected that reaction.

"I'll third." the two turned their heads, and there was Roalden a few feet away, grinning wolfishly at them. 

Dom grinned back. "Well! I didn't know someone was listening in on us."

"Well, someone was." This time it was Wolset who spoke, riding at Fulcher's side. "We're all terribly bored, you know. Count me in, too."

They all seemed rather excited by the idea. Dom just stared at them, amazed. So he hadn't been the only one to hold a grudge...

Slowly, a dark smile spread across his face. 

"Any ideas, men?..."

+++

Later that day, Dom sat on his bed, a wall of boxes, bright paper and ribbon spools clustered around him. He was hurrying to finish wrapping midwinter gifts; on the floor at the foot of his bed, a small pile of presents that were already wrapped had gathered in a heap. 

Dom struggled with a bright green ribbon, and wrestled it into a pleasant-looking bow over the box that lay in front of him. Giving the present a triumphant smirk, he tossed it over the side of his bed to join the others, and listened as it hit the ground with a dull thunk. Satisfied, he turned back to the work that remained, and pulled the next present into his lap.

Roughly half an hour later, he stood up, towering over the cluster of wrapped objects on the floor, finished at last. Nodding in an approving way down at his work, he gathered the gifts up and laid them out in a slightly neater pile on his desk. 

Dom's eyes fell on one gift in particular: a large rectangular box, wrapped in green with a filmy gray ribbon. He stared down at it a while thoughtfully, then picked it up and walked out of the room, tucking it under one arm.

Descending the stairs to the second floor, Dom felt some of the old paranoia over choosing the right present returning. He stomped it down quickly. No turning back now, the thing was already wrapped. Besides, he was sure she would like it. Fairly sure, anyway.

He walked up to Kel's door and knocked quietly, then stood there for a while, feeling foolish. Was she even in? He knocked again, louder this time.

"It's open!"

Dom swung the door open, poking his head in and glancing around. The room was a shambles - wrapping paper and ribbon everywhere. And there, sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, was Kel, determinedly wrapping a large, stuffy-looking book. The scene was so unexpected, Dom couldn't help but laugh.

Kel glanced up, looking surprised and then, slightly embarrassed. "Oh, Dom, hello--um...Come in. Sorry about the mess." She said, and smiled apologetically.

"Oh, it's fine." He assured her, taking careful steps into the room so not to step on anything. "My room's the same way." 

Kel nodded, then grunted in annoyance and glared down at the book. "You know, I hate wrapping. Next year, I'm just getting everyone a card."

Dom chuckled. "Great idea." He said, and sat down at the edge of her bed, looking around curiously. Odd that he'd never been in this room before. Elegant Yamani paintings hung on the walls; a row of colorful porcelain cats sat on a desk, each waving with a single paw. It was a nice room, despite the mess, and looked as though it might have belonged to a Yamani court lady - excepting the large assembly of weapons hanging on the wall. And, he noted with a small smile, the collection of food dishes sitting on the windowsill. 

A soft curse - at least, it was most likely a curse, though Dom couldn't swear in Yamani - brought him back to reality. Glancing over at Kel, he saw her tugging at a lopsided-looking bow. Smiling to himself, he began to study her silently. Her hair fought to escape the ponytail it was pulled back in, and a few pale brown wisps had already fallen to frame her face. She wasn't 'pretty', not exactly, but there was something about her that was attractive all the same...

Kel's eyes gazed down steadily as she worked, and Dom focused on this with interest. He had never noticed before, but he saw now that they were a soft hazel brown, blended with green and deceptively dreamy-looking. Details. Things he had overlooked before. 

And then, at the most inopportune of moments, his cousin's face appeared in the back of his head. Dom blinked, frowning. Suddenly, he realized that this had been a subconscious warning. There he was, gawking at the poor girl like a lovesick prat - or worse, like Meathead might have over a pretty court lady before he met Yuki - and completely forgetting the reason he had come down there in the first place. Brilliant. 

Lifting the package onto his lap, he was about to clear his throat - loudly, perhaps, to make her jump a little - when another idea formed in his head. Raising his eyebrows thoughtfully, he stared hard at Kel for a moment, watching her head for signs of movement. She remained absorbed in her work. He moved over to the end of the bed, trying to get at the best angle.

Kel's back now faced him. Slowly, carefully, he arched forward, his hands braced against the bed and taking most of his weight. Making as little noise as possible, he had soon leaned in right by the side of Kel's neck; the closeness made him lightheaded, but he ignored it, and a devious smile flickered across his face as he spoke quietly into her ear. "...Are you quite through yet?"

Kel jumped much higher than Dom had even hoped. He was about to pull back, when Kel's head jerked over her shoulder to glare at him. Another inch and their noses might have touched. 

They both reared back. It took a moment, but Dom was still able to pull off a good, infuriating grin, even if his face was rather flushed. Kel, blinking slowly and almost as red as Dom, snapped out of her shock just in time to return the grin with a weak glare. 

"Idiot..." she scolded. "That was dirty..." Realizing the double meaning of these words, her blush deepened slightly, and Dom felt his grin widening. This was an unexpected treat - he couldn't remember the last time he had seen Kel this flustered. 

"Oh, but it was worth it," he told her, and laughed a little, half to relieve nervousness, half out of sheer amusement. Kel fixed him with another glare. Moving the wrapped book off of her lap with a brisk sweep of her hand, she turned around fully to sit facing him. "Well, you have my attention now. What is it?" she snapped. Regretting her harsh tone a moment later, she glanced down and muttered an apology. 

Dom just shrugged, a smile tugging at his mouth. He held out the wrapped package to her, and Kel stared at it, startled, before taking it. Carefully removing the paper and ribbon, a plain wooden box was revealed underneath; she lifted the lid, and her eyes widened. Inside the box there laid a folded kimono. It was a soft blue color, embroidered with white and silver birds resembling doves - there was also a light gray inner kimono, and a wide silver _obi_.

Dom watched her curiously from the bed, and Kel turned her head towards him, pointing to the box's contents. "Where did..."

He grinned. "Yuki." 

Kel nodded and looked back to the kimono, then lifted it up out of the box with her hands. "It's lovely." She said, traces of awe in her tone. 

Dom's grin brightened, then turned into a wry smile. "Glad you think so. Now, will you ever actually wear it, or keep it stashed away in your closet forevermore as a keepsake?"

She glanced at him, suddenly wary. "There won't be any peace for me if I say the closet, will there?" she asked.

Dom shrugged his shoulders innocently. "Well, I don't know. We _are_ in a war..." 

Kel sighed, letting the kimono slip out of her hands and back into the box. She got to her feet, picking the box up as she stood. "Might as well get this over with, then." She said morosely, and stalked off into her dressing room before Dom could reply.

As she had grown older, Kel had become less and less comfortable with the idea of getting dressed up. A simple shirt and breeches was much more to her tastes. Besides, she was a knight now. Knights didn't go prancing about in frilly dresses. 

Kel snorted and put a hand to her mouth, choking down laughter. Well, of course they didn't. _'Unless there's something my friends aren't telling me...'_ she thought, and could no longer help cracking up at the mental images this had given her. She was glad that Dom was in the next room. He would have thought she'd gone mad.

__

'Then again, he probably wouldn't be that surprised,' she thought wryly, and tried to remember how to put on a kimono. _'It was bound to happen sometime.'_

+++

When Kel entered the bedroom again, several minutes had passed - she had forgotten how complicated changing into a kimono could be. Looking over at Dom, she saw him sprawled out over her bed, gazing up at the ceiling and looking entirely too comfortable. 

Closing the door behind her, Kel smiled at the image. "Comfy?" she asked.

Dom's head bobbed up from the pillow it was resting on. "Yes, very..." he trailed off, staring at her blankly. Sitting up, he swept his arm out dramatically, and bowed. This was a rather odd-looking gesture, seeing as he was sitting down.

"Might I say, my lady, that you look positively radiant?" he asked cordially, looking up at her and grinning in a way that made her feel a little faint.

Leaning against the door briefly, she recomposed herself and walked over to him, pointing her nose high. "Flattery will get you nowhere." She told him cooly. 

Dom smiled broadly, his blue eyes crinkling. "You're so cold." He remarked, his gaze following her as she sat down beside him. Kel laughed, flashing him a cruel smile and leaning back on the bed.

Snow fell in crazy swirls outside. The sparrows flew in one by one through a window left half-open, huddling in warm corners and shaking the wet from their feathers. Sitting beside Dom, Kel started feeling a little self-conscious. She looked down at herself briefly, and realized with a sinking feeling that the _obi_ probably made her look thick-waisted. That was how most sashes were on her. Although, that one gown she had worn to the wedding...That had a sash. Though it was a very loose sash, and translucent.

Thinking of the wedding, Kel actually smiled a little at the memory. The king had demanded that Raoul be wed at the palace, in order for him to witness it in the safety of his own home...And in order to torture his friend just a little. The knight commander was sulky at first, of course, but had soon grown quite happy with the idea of getting married at _The Palace_, instead of just at his fort. It had been nice to come back again; Lalasa's business was bigger than ever, so Kel had insisted that she focus on other orders instead of outfitting her specially in something. She had also tried to pay full price for her gown - not that she had succeeded.

The wedding itself hadn't been so bad either, actually...With Dom there to talk to, she had even had fun. Kel glanced over at him, and her face broke into a smile - Nari sat perched on his right knee, peeping up at him softly, and Dom stared down at her intently as though absorbed in a deep conversation. Looking up at Kel, he pointed to the small bird and said bluntly, "Now, I'm not sure, but I think she might be mocking me."

Nari ruffled her feathers indignantly, and Kel blinked and gave a startled laugh. Dom grinned, and Kel stared at him dumbly for a second, her heart doing a flip-flop that was starting to feel familiar. Gods, was she going to react this way whenever she saw him smile now? It was like she was a squire all over again...

__

'I am so fickle...'

"Kel?" 

Coming back to reality, she blinked at Dom and smiled nervously. "Oh, um..."

Something scratched at the door. Kel, grateful for the interruption, quickly got up and went to open the door. In walked Jump, his white fur soggy from snow and old melting sludge. Hime the cat, much drier by comparison, slipped in after him, and stopped to sniff distastefully at the wet dog. Jump just wagged his tail. 

Kel closed the door, shaking her head. Turning around, she saw that Dom was watching her, a faint smile on his face. 

The nervous smile quirked onto her face again. "What is it..?"

Dom blinked and looked down, embarrassed that she had caught him staring. "Oh...You look very nice," he told her honestly, and his face slipped into a sheepish grin, not knowing what else to do with itself. 

Kel looked down, eyes boring into the floor. "...Oh." she replied brilliantly. Coming up with nothing else to say, Kel stood rooted to the spot in embarrassed silence. This was pathetic! She was making a complete fool out of herself..._ 'Goddess, it's only Dom. I shouldn't _be_ this nervous.' _

That's right. It was only Dom. She just had to calm down, and...Wait. Dom. Dom's present. Kel kicked herself mentally. Of course! How could she forget, when he had come down just to give her _her_ present? 

"I-I have something for you, too," she said quickly, then turned and started walking over to her desk, on which various wrapped gifts were piled.

"Oh, you _shouldn't_ have." Dom drawled, grinning. He watched as Kel stopped at her desk, sliding open a side drawer and pulling out a long wrapped box, then walked back over to him and held the present out. Dom took it, and she watched anxiously was he tore away the paper. 

Now it was Dom's eyes that widened. Inside the box was a longbow, apparently homemade. The wood it was made with was knobbly and awkwardly cut, though its shape was surprisingly well curved. A bowstring was securely tied to it, and probably came from Kel's own supply of them. 

The thing that stood out most about this bow, by far, was the feathers. Six feathers, some bright copper and some brindled gold and black, were bound tightly by plain brown cord to both ends of the bow, three on each end. It was obvious to him what kind of bird they had came from. 

Dom stared at Kel for a long moment, and then at the bow - and then at Kel's hands, and then back at the bow. He took the weapon into his hands and ran a finger over the bumps in the wood, understanding clear on his face, then looked back up at Kel. "You made it..." He said, more as a statement than a question. 

Kel hesitated, then nodded. Dom stared at her in disbelief, then did the opposite and slowly began to shake his head. "You're mad."

She remained silent, and the two of them engaged in a staring contest of sorts. After a few seconds Kel sighed, breaking eye contact and flopping down beside him on the bed. "But I thought I might be able to _handle_ a bow...They're just these little curved sticks, after all..." she began feebly. "And I thought maybe I'd be better at it now..." Realizing that she was making excuses, she closed her mouth, lowering her head.

Dom laughed, and Kel glanced up from under her lashes to see him smiling. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "I love it." He told her warmly, the gratitude on his face too genuine for Kel to suspect him even for a moment.

Kel's stare quickly turned to the floor, suddenly feeling woozy. She also knew she was blushing _very_ deeply, if the burning feeling on her cheeks was any indication, though she couldn't fathom why. Perhaps it was that word... _'Love.'_ She repeated to herself, as a test. Something welled up inside her, responding, and it was almost frightening in a way. Especially as she recognized what it meant.

Her shoulder felt cold. Cold, and tingly. Looking up, she realized that Dom had taken his hand away. He was standing now, and had started on another careful walk across the room, his feet weaving their way through the sea of wrapping materials. "Well, I'm afraid I should be going now...My squad and I have a meeting planned that started about ten minutes ago. More of a party, really, but meeting sounds much more impressive..." 

Kel put on a grin, hoping her disappointment didn't show through it. "See you." 

He flashed her a quick smile back and nodded, and then he was out the door, closing it behind him with a soft slam.

Kel gazed at the door for a while in a daze. After about a minute she closed her eyes, let out a long breath, and laid down on her bed wearily. Her mind was swimming, and she was suddenly exhausted, but not at all sleepy. And who could sleep, with something as overwhelming as love to consider? 

And there was that word again. She was starting to wonder where she'd brought up the nerve to use it so often. After all, who was to say that this wasn't just another crush, like the one she had had when she was a squire?

__

But who's to say it wasn't just a crush back then either? The romantic in Kel reasoned. For a second she was taken aback - this was a side of her that had not surfaced in a _long_ time. The moment passed, though, and she was soon debating with herself. And losing.

__

I think I can tell the difference between the two. She countered.

The romantic ignored this, and continued on mercilessly. _You never really fell out of love with him, either - you had to force yourself to suppress those feelings because of Cleon. _

Kel was cornered. This was a very good point. She had naturally lost all romantic feelings for both Neal and Cleon, the only other people that she had ever thought of in that way. But Dom...

Dom...

The door swung open with a creak. Kel opened her eyes at the noise, frowning slightly. The person hadn't even thought to knock. 

"Kel?" 

Kel sat up with a jolt. Dom stood in the doorway, holding up the bow in one hand and looking slightly winded.

"I needed to ask you..."  
  
Kel got to her feet, walking towards him with all the grace of a drunkard as she slipped and stumbled over the mess carpeting the floor. "W...What is it?" she said, and was appalled to find that she sounded breathless herself. Why was she getting so excited? Surely he wasn't...

Dom pointed to the bow. "These feathers. They aren't...new, are they?"

She blinked, calming down for the most part, and raised an eyebrow at him quizzically. The feathers had, in fact, come from her old stash of them that had been given to her by the baby griffin's parents. "What do you mean?"

"I mean did you...Oh, never mind." He laughed. "It was a dumb question anyway." He said, letting the hand that clutched the bow fall to his side.

Kel stared at him curiously. "Alright...Uhm. Is that all?"

Dom glanced away. "I suppose so..." he admitted, shrugging his shoulders a little. He cleared his throat. "Well...guess I'll go, then."

Kel, disappointed again and barely repressing it this time, nodded and smiled up at him. "Good night, Dom."

Dom didn't move. Instead he stared at her for a long moment, looking torn, until something changed in his expression and he seemed to have come to a decision. He reached over and brushed back her bangs, then pressed his lips against her forehead. Kel's breath caught in her throat, then left in a shudder as Dom breathed into her hair. They stood like that for a while, leaning towards each other without realizing it until her head rested against his chest. An arm slipped around her, encircling her back. Confusion could wait - this was simply too comfortable.

Dom stroked Kel's hair absently, looking out over her head with an unfocused gaze. This had to be one of the most relaxing things he'd ever experienced. He was a lunatic to have tried it, of course, but he also was very glad that he had. Especially since she hadn't pulled away yet.

After another fifteen seconds or so, a saner part of Dom's mind began to nag at him. Sighing inwardly, he pulled back a little and tilted his head to look down at the lady knight, but her face was hidden from him. "...Kel." he whispered.

Kel stirred, and lifted her head. They stared at each other, and a wordless agreement passed between them. Dom's hand slid down to cup the side of her face, and his arm tightened around her back, pulling her against him. They kissed, and Kel wrapped her arms around Dom's waist, a silent thrill running through her veins as warm, comforting sweetness flooded into her. 

A door opened and closed somewhere, and footsteps sounded on the floor above them...If the person were to come downstairs, they'd have a fairly good view of the scene that was taking place.

Kel and Dom were both very aware of this fact. They pulled away reluctantly after a moment, breathless and still holding onto each other in a loosening embrace. Dom glanced up at the ceiling and sighed, a rueful look on his face. "Figures..." he muttered hoarsely. His eyes traveled back to Kel. He stared at her for a few seconds, considering, then seemed to think better of whatever he had been planning and grudgingly released her from his arms. Kel did the same, forcing her own arms to fall flat against her sides. She didn't completely trust them at the moment.

"Well...Midwinter luck, Kel." Dom said, his voice still a little husky, and his face broke into a wide grin. He turned and walked off, glancing back at her over his shoulder several times before he finally vanished around a corner.

Kel stood there for quite a long time before she closed the door. She walked over to the window on watery legs, opened it as far as it would go, and stuck her head out into the cold, snowy night air. A minute later she pulled her head back in and closed the window, feeling a great deal more like herself. She had snow in her hair and her lips were turning blue, granted, but still very much more herself.

Still, she couldn't help but wish that a certain sergeant were there to warm her lips again.

+ + +

A/N: Oh my, that _was_ a long chapter. A **full** **7 pages** (in my teeny weeny font)! A new record! *cackles* And it's done! It's done it's done it's done...

...Ahem. Anyway. Clearly, from the staggering lateness, this chapter gave me a lot of grief. I think the reasons are obvious enough (*coughs, glances over meaningfully at the K/D label in the fic's summary*), so I won't bother going into them here. Reviews would be very, veeeery welcome.

__

~Pheep

(P.S.: Veeeery.)

(Another P.S.: I should have added this before, but this fic isn't over yet! We have another climax to get to! XP Well, I guess the fact that chapter 8 follows this in the menu now says that for me, but oh well...)


	8. A Bit of Holiday Cheer

Wow. Over 100 reviews...that's just...wow.

Enjoy. ^__^

+ + + 

****

Daybreak

Chapter 8: _A Bit of Holiday Cheer_

+ + +

Kel laid on her side, her arm propping her head up from the bed, an open book in her hand. The week-long midwinter holiday was finally coming to an end, and after a lot of coaxing Neal had talked her into going to one last party with him and Yuki. 

This explained the gown she now wore - one of Lalasa's parting gifts, it was russet red velvet with gold trim in elaborate swirling designs, and had a collared neckline and long sleeves for the cold. Granted, the sleeves were rather bell-shaped for Kel's taste, and the gold thread was a bit too sparkly...But it did keep her warm, and in such freezing weather she would have to count her blessings.

For instance, the past two days had been wonderful. Dom had come to see her each day, and apparently had much less to do in the evenings now than he did before, since he stayed for quite a long while each time. It had been obvious to both of them that the kiss had meant something, and so they had spent only a brief amount of time questioning each other about their relationship; the rest had been spent on more...important things. 

Kel wished that these daily visits would be able to continue. It was strange, that she had grown so used to this in just a couple of days...But it was nice. No matter how aggravating things got, she could always look forward to Dom being there to comfort her later on. It was a nice feeling...Knowing that someone would be there later. 

Kel's eyes moved slowly over her open book. She turned a page, then quickly flipped back to reread a phrase. About a minute later she realized that she was reading the same sentence for the tenth time, and shut the book with a sigh, rolling onto her back. She couldn't concentrate any more. A part of her sorely wanted to do some weapons practice - she wouldn't allow herself to get rusty, no matter what, and she wanted a chance to clear her head - but that was only wishful thinking, dressed as she was. She didn't want to risk damaging one of Lalasa's gowns, and besides, if she did she would just have to change into another one anyway. Her former maid had made sure that Kel had quite a few lovely dresses in her wardrobe before she left, all of them suspiciously well-fitted to her.

Kel looked around her room, searching for something interesting to do. Seeing nothing that appealed to her, she decided to try meditating for a while. Sitting up on the bed, she placed her hands palm-up in her lap, pressing her thumbs to her forefingers as the emperor's armsmistress had once taught her. Closing her eyes, she pictured a still pond in her mind, and let her thoughts sink like stones into the clear water.

Several minutes later, when Kel was deep in meditation, somebody knocked at the door. Kel opened her eyes, coming back to the present, and slid off of her bed to walk across the room. As she turned the doorknob, she went over the most likely options for who would be visiting her at the time: There was Neal, ready to leave for the party...Yuki, ready to begin her inspection...And there was Dom, ready to...well. She'd continue that train of thought another time. She didn't need Yuki or Neal to see her blushing.

Thankfully, it was Dom who stood in the doorway after all. Dressed in pale silver hose and a velvet tunic almost the exact same blue as his eyes, he was plainly dressed for partying, and looked very handsome. He grinned at her, and held out what appeared to be a pinecone. "Evening."

"Evening," Kel repeated, smiling back. She showed him inside and took the offered thing, holding it up and eyeing it curiously. "What's this?"

"A pinecone." Dom told her, straight faced. "I find it hard to believe that you have yet to see another in your lifetime." 

Kel glanced up at him, frowning and raising her eyebrows. "...And...Why are you giving me a pinecone?" she asked, closing the door with her free hand.

Dom frowned as well, and bowed his head a little. "Well, you see, I was planning to give you a single red rose. Much more romantic, wouldn't you say? But, seeing as it's winter, and roses are hard to come by this time of year...I'm afraid this was all I could find." he explained, and gave a sad gesture to the pinecone when he finished speaking. 

Kel laughed and cupped it in her hands, studying it fondly. "I'll treasure it," she said, and walked over to set it down on her nightstand. Walking back over to him, she glanced at his clothes and blinked, then tilted her head. "...I take it Neal invited you as well." She said, more of a statement than a question.

"Why _yes_, as a matter of fact." Dom said, falsely thoughtful. "And you know, now that I think of it, he also suggested that I ask to escort you..."

Kel raised her eyebrows, and placed a hand on her hip. "Really," she said to his tunic.

"Yes. You don't suppose he might be trying to pair the two of us up, do you?" 

"Oh, but it would never work." Kel replied solemnly, and fought a grin as he slipped an arm around her waist.

"And why's that?" Dom asked, arching a brow at her curiously.

"Well...He's a little late." 

"Hm...True." He said, and placed a hand on the side of her arm, rubbing it absently. Kel's face broke into a smile, and she turned her head up to him as he leaned in closer, eyes falling shut...

...When yet more knocking sounded at the door. Kel's eyes flew open, as did Dom's, and they stared at each other for a few seconds, eyebrows raising. "..."

A pause. "Kel!" More knocking.

Kel sighed in spite of herself. That would be Neal. Dom scowled, privately cursing his cousin's existence, but his mouth twisted into a wry half-smile when he saw the slight pout that he knew Kel couldn't be doing consciously. "Another time," he murmured, then kissed her forehead quickly and stepped back to look for a place to look comfortable. He dismissed the bed as soon as he thought of it - dear Meathead would pounce on an opportunity like _that_ - and dove for a nearby chair instead, scrambling into what he hoped looked like a laid-back position just as Kel opened the door. 

Neal stood there, Yukimi next to him. They too were made up for a party - Neal was dressed in forest green with gold trim, a good combination on him, and cream-colored hose; his brown hair, usually slightly tousled-looking, was damp from a washing and combed into submission. Yuki, meanwhile, wore a wine-colored gown showered with small lavender gems, and had left her waist-length black hair hanging loose, a pretty effect whether it was for show or just to keep warm.

"Kel, the party's about to start, let's--" Neal began, speaking in a rushed tone. He glanced down at what she was wearing and stopped mid-sentence, his expression going slack. "...You look nice..." he said slowly, blinking a few times. Yuki rolled her eyes at her husband, smiling faintly.

Kel opened her mouth, about to stammer out a thanks. "Um..." 

Dom leaned back a little further in his chair. He raised his eyebrows delicately, the picture of indifference. "Quit staring, Meathead, you're making the poor girl nervous." He drawled.

Neal's head swung towards him, and he blinked in surprise, arching an eyebrow. "Well hello, cousin dear," he greeted, his voice a matching drawl. He glanced at Kel, then back at Dom sitting a few feet away, and his mouth stretched into a wide, cat-like grin. "Oh my," he said cheekily, "...were we interrupting something?" 

Misreading the dark look that Dom sent him and the faint blush that appeared on Kel's face, Neal laughed and waved them off casually, his green eyes gleaming demonically. "Oh, calm down, I was only kidding." He assured them. Yuki raised an eyebrow at Kel, fighting a smile, and Kel suppressed the urge to glare at both of them. Venomously.

Dom, meanwhile, saw no reason not to glare. His eyes narrowed a little more at Neal, who received this with an impish look that could one day get him very badly injured. Seeing that he wasn't getting through to his sapskull relative, Dom sighed inwardly and stood, his face smoothing itself out. "Well, come on, we'd better get going."

"Now wait a second," Yuki, silent until that point, spoke up. "Kel, you aren't wearing _any_ face paint, _or_ jewelry."

Kel's eyes turned to the ceiling; she drew a deep breath, and barely kept herself from sighing afterwards. This was going to be a long evening...

"She looks...fine." Dom said, and smiled. "Now let's go. We don't want to be late."

Yuki sighed, admitting defeat. "Oh, all right. She's changing out of those boots, though!"

+ + + 

As it turned out, the party was being held at New Hope's mess, a larger, slightly more formal version of the original in Haven. Many of the townspeople were attending, and Kel couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed with Neal for not telling her how big a party she had agreed to go to. 

She also worried about her clothes. Would her people take it as an insult if she and her friends came dressed so expensively? She hoped not, but there was nothing she could do about it - she wasn't about to ask to go running back to her rooms to change into something more casual, and hardly believed that Yuki would let her go either way. And so she continued along down the wide street, with Dom walking beside her and Neal and Yuki leading the way. Piles of melting snow had gathered on the sides of the road, and the ground was covered with patches of sleet and ice. 

This, combined with the high heels of Kel's shoes, made for a very difficult walk. Swearing quietly, she stumbled and promptly tripped for the third time, falling forward. Dom grabbed her arm and pulled her back up, placing his hands on her shoulders to steady her. "Careful!" he said, and waited until she was balanced again before taking his hands away. 

"You're going to kill yourself on those things," he observed, giving her shoes a brief frown before looking back up and holding out his arm to her. "Here - take my arm."

Kel was embarrassed, but she wasn't above the help. Linking the offered arm with her own, she smiled gratefully at Dom, then looked away and stared down at her feet as they started walking. She didn't even try to sneak a glance at Yuki or Neal, but she could see their 'knowing' smiles clearly enough in her head already.

Another few minutes of walking (or hobbling in Kel's case), and they were at the mess. People entered its wide doorway in a steady stream, and the four of them joined the flow of the crowd as they went inside. They were pushed along a good ways into the gigantic room, and Kel had to practically cling to Dom much of the time just to keep herself up. 

Setting aside the fact that she was finding a way to enjoy the close contact, Kel was quickly getting more and more suspicious of her two other friends. She glanced at Neal and Yuki where they were being moved along a few feet away, and fixed her eyes on them with a cynical gaze, brooding. _'This crowd probably wasn't something they thought of in advance, it's too random...But Yuki could have had something like this in mind when she made me wear these damned high heels.'_ Just how big of a plot had they come up with for the night? She wouldn't put much past those two when they were left to entertain themselves. 

Or maybe she was getting ahead of herself. Maybe they hadn't thought of anything past suggesting that Dom escort her...Maybe she was thinking a little harshly of them. Just because Neal and Yuki were mischievous didn't mean they always had to have a hidden agenda, did it? No, of course not...She could just be jumping to conclusions.

At that moment, a fresh wave of newcomers flooded in from the main door. The force of the surging crowd nearly knocked Kel onto the floor, and she grappled desperately at Dom's tunic with her free arm until she had a firm hold. Dom, likewise, unhooked his arm from hers and wrapped it around her shoulders instead, supporting her as the sea of partiers pushed them along. "Who knew there were so many people in this town..." he wondered quietly, staring out at the others surrounding them with a vague kind of awe.

"I did, but I'd never been in a room with all of them moving around at the same time...Can't say I'm happy for the new experience." Kel replied bitterly, and glanced around in awe at the other people as well, though it was more of the terrified sort than amazed. She subconsciously edged a little closer to Dom, a part of her realizing that if she weren't holding onto him she could have very well been trampled to death by now.

Dom laughed and patted her shoulder lightly. "Come on, now - we'll survive. Worst comes to worst, you _could_ just go barefoot the rest of the night. Or, better yet, we could figure out a way to break those heels off. I may be able to do it with my own hands, really."

Kel smiled and looked up at him. "You would do that for me?" she asked, and gazed at him with a mostly feigned dreaminess.

"I would be honored." He said in a heroic tone, and smiled at her broadly. To those watching, this probably looked like a normal amused grin, but from the warm look that his eyes sent her Kel was able to translate it into, 'I'd kiss you now, except for the massive crowd surrounding us and those bothersome people spying on us a few feet away'. She blushed and responded with a rueful smile, and Dom tightened his arm around her shoulders a little in a small hug. They heard a familiar voice titter nearby, and the two of them glanced up in time to see Yuki's head turn away from them quickly. She and Neal were both shaking silently.

Kel stared at the backs of their heads, her blush deepening. A dry smile twitched onto her lips, and she raised her eyebrows, sighing audibly. They were planning something. She was sure of it now. Glancing back at Dom, she noted that his face had also gone rather red. He regarded the snickering couple with one eyebrow arched, and blinked a few times, trying to keep up some amount of calm. "...I have a feeling that they're going to get more and more annoying as the night goes on..." he muttered, speaking to her quietly so they wouldn't be able to hear - even if the room was loud to begin with, he wasn't taking any chances.

"I have a feeling that you're right..." Kel told him, also in a low voice. It was about that time that they noticed that the crowd was starting to loosen up, and Dom reluctantly took his arm away, his hand lingering for a moment before he let it drop. Kel let go of Dom's tunic and straightened, then tested her balance by taking a few steps forward. The high heels still made her uneasy, but it _was_ much easier to walk on the wooden floor than it had been on the ice and mud outside. 

Dom continued to walk close to her side, in case she tripped again - or at least, that was one reason. Another would be that every few moments, Kel's arm would brush or bump against his, something that was apologized for at first but after a while went unmentioned. He was tempted to take her hand, but for now he would have to suppress that urge - he wasn't about to try that while his cousin was watching, and he wasn't sure how Kel would react, Meathead or no Meathead...He had a feeling that she wouldn't be comfortable with public displays of...affection. And that was fine. He would respect that. But, if that were the case, then he wished that they didn't have to be in public so often.

After exploring the mess for a while, the two of them ended up sitting at one of the long tables, which had been rearranged temporarily for the party so that they were mostly to the right side of the large room. Dish after dish had been lined up over the white tablecloth, and Kel and Dom served themselves a few of the different foods before sitting down across from each other, at the end of the table that faced towards the wall. They talked and ate together as the party dragged on, and both tried not to notice when Neal and Yuki sat down at the table next to theirs. Still, they were careful to stick to platonic subjects. Lord Raoul, for instance:

"..._That's_ what happened? Really?" Kel asked, staring at him in disbelief.

"Yes. That's what happened." Dom replied bluntly, cutting off a chunk of smoked venison with his knife.

Kel shook her head, first at him and then down at her dinner. "That's terrible," she said, and sounded to have meant it - except for the shakiness in her voice at the end of "terrible". She quickly took a large spoonful of her mashed potatoes, swallowing fast, and continued to gaze down at her plate.

Dom furrowed his brow at the smile and laugh that he could tell she was forcing down. "Oh, sure, laugh it up. You were his squire, after all," he said dully, and blinked at her in disdain. "I should have known that you would be on his side. Probably helped him plan the whole thing out, too."

Kel glanced up to see Dom's jaded expression, and lost the battle against her mouth, which broke into a wide smile. "Oh, calm down, I didn't plot anything," she told him. "But still--" she added, and her voice wavered again. "You have to admit, it's sort of funny..."

"Oh, so you enjoy hearing of how I nearly _died_ of cold and starvation?" Dom asked, and half-stood from his seat to loom over her, hands braced against the table.

Kel shook her head, quivering, and bit her lip.

"Does my pain _amuse_ you?" 

By now Kel was laughing outright. She looked up to see Dom staring down at her, and her laughter increased considerably.

"Sadist." Dom hissed, his eyes crinkling. He sat back down and leaned back in his seat with a grin, satisfied with making her laugh. "Someone should lock you up." 

"Well, _yes,_" Kel began, once she could breathe again. "But we knew that. They should have locked both of us away years ago, in a safe little room where we couldn't hurt anybody..." she mused, speaking in a whimsical tone that bled into a chuckle.

"Exactly." Dom said, swallowing. "But they never did. It's strange, really, that such insanity has gone unchecked for so long...Mm - you know, this is really good," he added, and pointed to his plate with his fork.

"Society is so blind..." Kel agreed gloomily, then glanced at Dom's plate and nodded. "Yes, the cooks have outdone themselves."

Later on, a group of townspeople wielding musical instruments banded together up on the small platform that had been added in the rebuilding of the mess, and a steady flow of music became the background noise for the talking and laughter that already filled the air. Those standing backed away from the left side of the room, and pairs of people began to leak out onto the empty dance floor.

Dom turned his head and watched the dancing couples thoughtfully. A few moments later he turned back to Kel, a strategically casual expression fixed onto his face. "I don't suppose you'd want to...?" he asked, trailing off in a hopeful way.

Kel smiled apologetically, and shook her head. "No, I'm sorry," she said. She watched Dom's face fall slightly, and hastily explained, "It's just, I don't think I would last five minutes out there in these," and gestured under the table, towards her shoes. She thought that she heard a whispered "oops" at the other table, but she wasn't sure.

"Oh, right..." he said, looking away and nodding a little. There was a dreary pause, and then suddenly Dom leaned towards her again, keeping his head down. "Listen, do you want to get out of here?" he asked quietly, his voice lowered to a conspiring murmur. His eyes moved up from the tablecloth to give her an expectant stare.

Kel stared at his face blankly, stunned by the question for a second. "Uh..." Her face flushed a pale red, and then a moment later it sagged slightly, giving way to a sincerely worn look. "Please." She said bluntly, forgetting to keep her voice down and flinching at her mistake as soon as she made it. Dom gave a surprised laugh, and he straightened and got up from his chair, keeping his eyes on her as he did. 

"Ahh, they're leaving..." Yuki whispered anxiously, and gripped Neal's shoulder to get his attention, although he was already looking.

"I can see that, love," he muttered calmly. The two of them watched over their shoulders as Kel got out of her seat, and a self-assured smirk spread across Neal's face. "Don't worry. We'll still have our fun."

"What's your idea?" she asked, her head turning to him with interest.

"Look towards the ceiling, and tell me what you see." Neal replied, his eyes still focused on his cousin and the lady knight. They were starting to move away from the table now, but that was all right...All in due time.

Yuki's gaze moved upwards, and she scanned the ceiling, her brow creasing. After a few moments she saw it, and the crease smoothed out, replaced by a delighted smile. "Oo...Perfect."

"I thought you might like that," he remarked casually, and his smirk broadened slightly as he slipped out of his chair, and slowly began to advance on the runaways. Glancing back at Yuki, he jerked his head in their direction, and she nodded and stood, following him with just as much stealth. Just when Dom and Kel had made it to one of the side doors, Neal stopped a few feet away from them and called in a loud voice, "Leaving so soon, you two?". Yuki stopped beside him and clasped her hands behind her back, barely suppressing a grin.

Kel and Dom paused in mid-step. They glanced at each other with a brief frown, then turned around, both of them wearing diplomatic expressions. "Yes, I'm afraid so. Lovely time and all, but we're both getting very tired, so we'll be going now..." Dom explained practically, already moving towards the door again. Kel nodded and turned quickly, about to follow him.

"Oh, that's too bad..." Neal drawled sadly. He tilted his head to one side. "But, wait just a moment..."

"Yes..." Dom asked, and barely kept himself from adding a "Nealan?" at the end. Kel glanced back at Neal over her shoulder, frowning slightly. She had a bad feeling...

Neal smiled broadly, and Yuki's eyes crinkled deviously as they each pointed to above where Kel and Dom were standing. The two of them looked up, and they both stared, transfixed, at the object hanging from the rim of the door. 

Kel blinked, and tried to remain as calm as possible. Mistletoe. Of course. How had she not seen that coming? It was so obvious. So very very obvious. You go to a midwinter party, and there will naturally be mistletoe about. And you never know where precisely it's planted, but it does tend to be hung above doors much of the time. Just like the one they were standing under now. She could hardly believe that she hadn't realized--

It was at about this point that the shock fully wore off, and the situation started to really sink in: She was expected to kiss Dom, in front of Neal and Yuki, along with anyone else in the town that felt like watching. Her cheeks reddened slightly. She had mixed feelings about this. Then she looked down to see that Dom was staring at her, and it became a challenge to concentrate on anything outside of the color of his eyes. The small part of her mind that was still able to think straight noticed the questioning look he was giving her behind his blush, and this only succeeded in making her thoughts more muddled. Of course she wanted to kiss him. That went without saying. But..._Why_ did so many people have to be there?...

An anxious look entered Dom's eyes, and he glanced away, the corners of his mouth tugging themselves down in a faint frown. Watching him, Kel realized that she was being selfish. Dom would understand if she didn't go through with it, she knew that he would...But surely he would be at least a little hurt. And how could she allow that, over a kiss of all things? 

She looked down at Dom's hand, and then at her own hand. It didn't move. All right, so that wasn't working. Sucking in a breath, she closed her eyes and reached out until her fingers touched something warm - his wrist, maybe? Yes. Good. 

She opened her eyes, and her surroundings were conveniently drowned out again by the warm blue gaze that welcomed her. Dom smiled as he bent down and eased his mouth over hers, kissing her with a disarming gentleness that she was only starting to get used to. Kel returned the kiss warmly, and her hand moved down from his wrist and into his open hand, which closed around it tightly. After a few seconds his lips left hers, curving into calm, dazed smile; Kel was sure that she was she was smiling in much the same way, but at the moment she didn't particularly care. 

And she only cared a little bit that they had attracted an audience. A few people were clapping, and a couple of noises that were either cheers or catcalls sounded somewhere around them. "Dom, you old dog!" someone called with a laugh. "What are you doing to our poor, innocent Kel?"

"I'm going to ignore that," Dom called back, not turning his head away to see who had made the remark, while Kel glanced down and fought a losing battle against embarrassment. He grinned down at her and gave her hand an assuring squeeze, though that seemed to only make her blush a little more brightly.

"Well!" Neal cried merrily, and crossed his arms smugly over his chest. "I know which embarrassing story I'll be telling at my next midwinter party! What about you, Yuki?" he asked, turning his head in the Yamani's direction.  
  
"I'll add in any extra details you might forget," she replied wickedly, wearing a small smile and looking just as pleased as her husband.

"Why, thank you, my dear - that's just ever-so-thoughtful of you." He drawled smoothly, and looped an arm around her shoulders with a practiced grace.

"I try," she said simply, her head automatically tilting towards the crook of his neck.

"Yes..." he agreed, giving a sage nod and pulling her closer to his side. "And now, back to the present!" he exclaimed, raising his head with the look of a cat about to close in on his mouse. He looked around, and his expression faded into confusion, then disappointment. "Aw, no - they _left_?"

Yuki's head left Neal's shoulder, and she blinked at the spot where the two had last been standing, her dark eyebrows quirking upwards in surprise. "It would seem so..." she glanced up at Neal uncertainly. "We're not going to go after them, are we?"

"Naah..." he said, and a grin reappeared on his face. "We'll leave them alone...for tonight. That'll make torturing them _tomorrow_ all the more enjoyable." 

"Hmm...I like your thinking." She chirped, and tugged at his arm. "Come on - let's go dance."

+ + +

It had stopped snowing outside for the time being, and Kel and Dom scrambled down the empty street together, the sound of their laughter spiraling up into the cold, clear night air. Kel stumbled over a patch of ice, but Dom pulled her back against him with his hand, still tightly clasping hers. She laughed again and nestled into him, drawing a long breath that came out in a stream of giggling she wasn't able to hold back. "That was _insane_," she gasped, and grit her teeth into a grin to try and keep the rest of her laughter in her throat.

"Hmm...Definitely a party I'm going to remember," Dom commented, and wrapped his free arm around her back.

She turned her head up to look at him, a broad smile still stretched over her face. "We're never going to hear the end of this." 

Dom grinned down at her with twinkling eyes. "I don't doubt it."

"We're acting ridiculous." She told him, filling her voice with all the scolding that she could muster. It wasn't much. 

"Well, I personally think we have every right to," he replied, and leaned in to kiss her again. "Don't you?"

"Mm..."

+ + +

A/N: Hey, check it out! I made the Christmas deadline! Wooo yeah!...

*cough* That is, if I lived in, say, Australia. Though then again, are they a day before the states or a day ahead? Ehh. Oh well. At least I'm only a half hour past midnight, right? (or, actually, 3am for me, but I'm going to keep clinging to the lie that I live on the West Coast for now).

Anyway. I did actually finish the chapter Christmas morning, but then I needed to edit. Stupid editing. Sometimes I wish I didn't care enough to edit...

What, you thought I didn't care?...Well, okay, I guess I can see where you got that impression, this being the newest chapter in over three months...X_x; Man. I am so glad I am on vacation. Looking back now, school really killed my schedule in all these little ways, and I usually didn't even notice. 

...But, moving past the lateness. Let's answer a couple reviews! For those of you that I did answer that didn't read the old author's note, sorry, but I had to take it down. I guess some people must have been posting an A/N like every other chapter for the ff.net staff to need to ban them from being posted independently @_@ What can you do.

Now, the couple of reviews:

First, **CrystalLili**: Yay, a review with quotes in it! n_n Wow, that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy, looking back on it in my poor stuffed email inbox. ^^ Thanks a lot. Now, about what you said about New Hope being a refugee camp. I checked the books (the Epilogue of Lady Knight, particularly: "After two months or so the fortified town of New Hope still looked raw, but it was starting to resemble an actual town rather than a logging camp thrown together in a week")...and since it said that it was actually a fortified town (or a fown, as I like to call it. Tort also works), which is apparently a bit different from a camp...well, you know, creative liberty and all that? XD

And now, **PoisonMoon**: Thanks, I've gotten almost no reviews these days, being so behind. I'm really glad that you took the time to comment! Sorry if the end of the last chapter confused you a little - like I said, I did have an author's note up, but I had to get rid of it because of the new rule on ff.net. I also think you were right when you said I could bring my writing up a notch - I think that all writers always have room to improve. I'm not sure if you meant on terms of description, or just style overall, but either way I guess I could say that these days I've been doubting whether my writing style is very good for a fanfic of one of Tamora Pierce's books. It's frustrating that I end up writing things so elaborately, when she's able to illustrate things so well in such a cleaner, simpler way. @@ I hope that someday I'll be capable of that, to some extent...But being the rambling creature I am, I don't think its that likely ^^;; 

Anyone else that had any issues with the story that I didn't fix or answer, feel free to email me or ask in a new review (the second one, go for the second one!), and I'll either reply in the next chapter or through email. I live to serve! XP I'm just a very flaky servant.

Oh! I almost forgot! I need to talk about the chapter's _content_ a little bit now. Well. It was...fluffy. Again. People were happy, and there was mistletoe (who says that Tortall can't have mistletoe? They have knights, they have wine, and they have kimonos, don't they?). It could very well be said by looking at this, that Pheep might be losing her grip on the actual plot, couldn't it now? Hehehe..HEH. Well. It could also be said that this could be the last perpetually happy chapter you'll see for a while. Chapter nine, at least, will support this. ^_^ YAY PLOT! YAY PLOT! YAY SERIOUS THOUGHT!!

...Uh. Sorry about the chant X_x; It's 4am now, and I got about six hours last night. I mean morning. Ah, sweet vacation. The ultimate high.

Expect more by spring break. ^^; Wow, that's really long...But, I don't have that much faith in myself for finishing fast anymore, so that's the best I can promise right now...Heh.

Love you guys! Sorry if you ODed on the fluff! (Please don't have your mourning parents arrest me!)

__

~Pheep

(P.S.: With the A/N, chapter eight is eight pages in size eight verdana font. Woo yeah. Please review.)


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